Tolmers Village Association exhibition panel, 1974

PANEL TEXT

Camden Council

1966
Housing in Starcross St, Cobourg St, and Euston St declared unfit for human habitation. Clearance order issued. People moved out. Nothing done since.
1968
Attempt to redevelop the whole area for housing. Compulsory Purchase Oder (CPO) issued for the whole site. CPO rejected by Peter Walker, then Minister of the Environment because the land was too expensive (then worth £300,000 per acre, now worth £800,000).
1971
Started negotiations with Stock Conversion. The Levy deal seemed to be the only way to get enough money to redevelop.
1973-June
Claudius deal proposed
1973 – Sept
Decision by planning and resources committee to go ahead with the Levy Deal.
1973 – Oct
As the result of pressure by the Stop the Levy Deal campaign, September’s decision was reversed by a full council meeting.
Both the Levy deal and the Claudius deal shelved while other alternatives are looked into.

Camden has a desperate housing shortage. There are 9000 people on the waiting list. The Borough wants land for housing in Tolmers Village.

But they are understaffed and short of money because developers remove money generated in the area. Clumsy centralised administrative machinery means clumsy large scale demolition and redevelopment.

Camden’s new policy – Minimum requirements for any scheme for Tolmers Square.
1 All the housing must be owned by the Council.
2 the total capacity of the housing on the site must be around the original target of 1500 bed spaces.
3 The housing mix must be to the satisfaction of the Council.
4 Provision must be made for a 40 person home for the elderly.
5 An adequate sound and amenity buffer should be created between the housing and Euston and Hampstead Roads.
6 The maximum amount of the existing fabric should be retained.
7 Through traffic should be eliminated from the area.
8 It should be more favourable to the Council than the terms proposed by Stock Conversion.
9 It should, if possible, leave financial control in the hands of Camden rather than any other body and dispense with intermediaries.

But all they will have done is put as many people back as used to be there before they and Stock Conversion started interfering.And they will be different people.
We, the existing users, must have our needs met first.

• Media
  Photograph
• Year
  1974
• Collection
  Exhibition