As we hit our first 500 signatures, we have emailed our local councillors to request an urgent meeting to discuss our concerns and have issued a Press Release.
PRESS RELEASE
Petition against green space destruction hits 500
Roehampton residents demand rethink from Wandsworth Council
Toland Square, Roehampton 9th January 2024
A petition demanding Wandsworth Council rethink plans to develop the only green space in a Roehampton housing court has now been signed by 500 local residents.
The Save Toland Square action group announced the milestone today and called on their local councillors as well as Wandsworth Council’s Cabinet Member for Housing, Aydin Dikerdem, to take concerns about the proposed development seriously.
“We have been very vocal in our opposition to these plans that would remove and build on almost our entire green space,” spokesperson for the group Zara Tomkinson said. “But we’re not being listened to. The council is more focussed on pushing through its new homes plan than in listening to local residents and taxpayers.”
Current development plans would see Toland Square’s actual square, complete with mature trees, levelled and replaced with a three-storey building. The current play structure and recreation centre would then be relocated to between two existing blocks, further reducing the green space available to residents. It means local residents and their children won’t have any outdoor areas to play or relax, with the nearest public park a 20-minute walk away.
Not only that but the development will increase population density by over 50 per cent, leading to greater traffic congestion, noise and air pollution, a significant reduction in privacy and safety, and will overload an already straining waste and rubbish disposal system.
The depth of local feeling has been made clear by the fact that the petition has gathered 500 signatures, despite just 200 people living in the square itself.
“People can’t believe it when we show them the actual plans,” said Tomkinson. “We understand Wandsworth Council is trying to get more people housed but squeezing them into estates and taking away the only green space that existing residents have is not the way to do it. If they go ahead with this they’ll need to change the name from Toland Square to Toland Tower Blocks.”
Save Toland Square is demanding that the council revisit the plans, cancel the proposed new building on the square, and consider other areas for development instead. It has asked local Labour councillors Jenny Yates, Graeme Henderson, Matthew Tiller and for an urgent meeting to discuss their concerns.
More information and contact details
Website: https://savetolandsquare.org/
Petition: https://www.change.org/p/save-toland-square
Press contact: Zara Tomkinson | zara@savetolandsquare.org | 07748 804068