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Greenwich Police appeal for help to find man on the run

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Police are appealing for information regarding the whereabouts of a man they want to speak to, following an investigation led by detectives in Greenwich.

Officers want to speak to Carlos Hutchinson, 40, from Greenwich, in connection with a kidnap, which took place in August 2010.

On the 25th of August 2010 police received several emergency calls related to a young man who was badly injured and had been bundled in a car in Pinto Way, SE3 and taken to an address in Greenwich.

Following the kidnap, 11 people were arrested; the victim was found alive two days later. All arrested are currently on bail pending further enquiries.

DC Neil May from Greenwich CID said: “We urge members of the public to contact us if they have any information about Carlos Hutchinson. We are keen to speak with him as soon as possible in order to complete our enquiries. We will treat all information given to us in the strictest confidence.”

Greenwich Police are keen to hear from anyone that knows Carlos Hutchinson or knows of his whereabouts.

Members of the public are asked not to approach Mr Hutchinson, but to call police on the following numbers; Plumstead CID on 0208 284 9416 or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

Council gives green light to large Peninsula hotel

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Greenwich Council gave planning consent to a huge new hotel next to the O2 on the Greenwich Peninsula last night.

The 452 bedroom hotel will be accompanied by a tower of 100 serviced apartments and a 3000 sq ft ballroom.

Hundreds of new jobs are expected to be created at the new hotel which will have more bedrooms than Greenwich’s Holiday Inn, Novotel and Devonport House hotels combined.

The large ballroom will be used as an events space and designers claim it will compete with Park Lane hotels to attract “thousands of events to Greenwich”.

The apartments are residential properties with additional services provided such as laundry and hotel-style room service. The apartments will be sold on the open market and the owners will be able to choose whether or not to add them to the hotel’s pool of properties which it will manage and rent out to guests.

The site of the development is a 3 hectare plot of land directly to the west of the O2, previously known for planning purposes as N0301. It consists of three separate buildings in a stepped profile – the serviced apartments tower being the tallest of the three at 24 storeys.

Local MP, Nick Raynsford, offered a withering assessment of the designs when they were first unveiled earlier this year, describing them as “a complex of not very well related buildings which leave the impression of being a cross between a grain silo and a Soviet-era Palace of Culture”.

Modifications have been made to the design since then but the Greenwich Society and Greenwich Conservation spoke against the plans at last night’s meeting.

Philip Binns from the Greenwich Conservation Group told the meeting last night that the proposal was not the “impressive signature building” originally envisaged in the Greenwich Peninsula Masterplan.

John Franklin from the Greenwich Society said that they wanted to see “the best building with the very best impact” and that the hotel was supposed to have been “the dominant development”.

The Greenwich Peninsula Masterplan of 2004 envisaged a hotel building being the tallest building on the Peninsula and granted outline planning permission for it to be built up to a maximum height of almost 104 metres. The new proposed development will only reach 93 metres and won’t be the iconic tower some had hoped for.

Philip Sandilands, director of Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands, defended his plans, saying that a taller building “wasn’t feasible”, citing concerns over flight paths and the nearby pumping station. He said that the previous design had been “overbearing”.

Cllr Dermot Poston responded by saying that the hotel was “supposed to be the iconic plan of the Peninsula”. He commented that “the very nature of a tower is that it’s overbearing”.  He told Mr Sandilands, “I don’t follow what you’re saying. It doesn’t make sense to me at all”, labelling the project as “an absolute disaster”.

Council Leader Chris Roberts said he was “comfortable” with the designs. He commented that development in the area had already deviated from the Masterplan with the tapered profile of the Ravensbourne  College and Mitre Passage buildings to the east of the O2.

The proposal was voted through by the Planning Board on a majority of 5 – 2.

Councillors Chris Roberts, Denise Hyland, Steve Offord, Ray Walker and Jaghir Sekhon voted in favour of the application.

Councillors Dermot Poston and Geoff Brighty voted against.

Additional resources:

Report for Planning Board
Planning application documents

Greenwich Council Meeting: 27th October 2010

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Councillors met at Woolwich Town Hall last night for the first full council meeting since the summer recess.

Royal Hill school building

The Victorian school building in Royal Hill which has latterly been used as an annexe for Charlton Special School could be returned to use as a primary school, it was revealed.

In a written response to a question from Cllr Spencer Drury (Conservative, Eltham North), the Cabinet Member for Children and Young People, Cllr Jackie Smith (Labour, Thamesmead Moorings), stated that the council “is considering plans for the reopening of the school to meet the growing demand for primary school places in west Greenwich”.

The John Roan School

Councillor Alex Wilson (Conservative, Blackheath Westcombe) asked for an update on the re-building of The John Roan School. A written reply from Councillor Jackie Smith revealed that a design team was in place, the process to appoint a building contractor was “well advanced” and work was expected to start in approximately 12 months.

Sleeping Arrangements

Former Liberal Democrat Paul Webbewood used the opportunity of Public Questions to ask council leader, Councillor Chris Roberts, if he had ever slept at Woolwich Town Hall. “No”, replied Cllr Roberts.

Blackheath Fireworks

Cllr Alex Wilson (Conservative, Blackheath Westcombe) said that the decision not to contribute to this year’s Blackheath Fireworks felt like being “a dinner guest who has walked away at the last minute without helping to pay his share of the bill”, and asked for the cut to be justified by the Council.

Deputy Leader of the Council, Cllr Peter Brooks (Labour, Thamesmead Moorings) said there were “65 million reasons” to justify the decision, alluding to the £65 million the council expects to have to cut. Cllr Brooks said that the share of the costs for Greenwich Council was £37,000 which equated to “a job a bit”.  He said he was “given about two days in the middle of the recess to come up with this decision” and it wasn’t a decision taken “lightheartedly”.

Read more on the issue of Blackheath Fireworks at 853

Disposal of land in Commerell Street

The council resolved to try and sell two houses it owns in Commerell Street. The council has estimated that selling the land will raise £550,000 which it intends to spend on its new Housing Delivery Vehicle, financing decant costs in Kidbrooke and Woolwich and other urgent capital works on council-owned homes. The council will need to gain permission from the Secretary of State for Local Government before proceeding with the disposal.

Nouvelles Racines Free School

A Conservative motion welcoming the attempt to set up a new free school teaching the International Baccalaureate was debated by councillors.

Cllr Dermot Poston (Conservative, Eltham North) praised the “vision” of parents and teachers behind the school who he said had a “passion” for educating children “in depth”.

Cllr Adam Thomas (Conservative, Eltham South) said that the parents and teachers  proposing the free school wanted to “make a difference to the education of children in this borough”.

Cabinet member in charge of schools, Cllr Jackie Smith said it was “wholly unfair to debate in this chamber one particular proposal that is still being assessed by the Department of Education”.

She said that the council was “corncerned about free schools” which she said had “too many unknowns”. She pointed that the borough already a diverse range of schools which within the local authority “family”.

She said she didn’t wish to debate the merits of the IB but didn’t think funding should be taken away from other children in the borough to “set up a bit of elitism”.

Cllr David Grant (Labour, Greenwich West) accused Greenwich Conservatives of “jumping on Mr Gove’s decidedly rickety bandwagon” and said their motion was “trivial and foolish”.

Cllr Alex Grant (Labour, Blackheath Westcombe) – himself a former student of the International Baccalaurate – said it was a good course but not a “magic bullet”.  He also commented that there was “nothing to prevent any state school in Greenwich from starting to do the International Baccalaurate”. He said that as a “through school” catering for all ages, he thought it would be “overwhelming” for young children to be sharing a playground and school building with 17 and 18 year olds.

Cllr Nigel Fletcher (Conservative, Eltham North)  said that there was a “mindset” within the Labour group that they could  allow experimentation and parent involvement with schools “but only up to a point” because “at the end of the day, the council knows best”.

Planning Inspectorate overturns council’s hotel decision

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A new 47 bedroom hotel has been given the green light by the independent Planning Inspectorate after being rejected by Greenwich Council.

Developer, Cameo Properties, can now begin building the six storey budget hotel in Tunnel Avenue, close to the A102.

In turning down the application, the council had stated that the hotel would “constitute an overdevelopment of the site that would be out of keeping with the scale, character and appearance of the immediate surrounding area” and that it failed “to make provision for adequate car parking spaces”.

But the Planning Inspector, Mr Leslie Coop, disagreed with the council’s conclusions. The development “would improve the existing street scene and the character of the area”, he wrote in his Appeal Decision.

Despite the hotel having 47 rooms, the proposals include plans for only 13 car parking spaces. Mr Coop commented that the hotel would have sufficient off street parking would be “within walking distance of North Greenwich” bus and tube stations.

A hand car wash is currently in operation on the land and the adjacent house, number 228 Tunnel Avenue, will be demolished as part of the development. The hotel is expected to create 10 full time jobs and 20 part time jobs.

The developer originally applied to build flats on the land in 2005 but this was rejected by the council. A subsequent application in 2007 to build a 27 room hotel was also refused but a revised 17 bedroom hotel was approved. The developer didn’t go ahead with that proposal and instead submitted plans for a 47 room hotel late last year.

UPDATED: Developer speaks to Greenwich.co.uk

The man behind the hotel scheme is local developer, Jigs Chana from Cameo Properties. Mr Chana studied at the University of Greenwich and tells me that he has been heavily involved with the local Chamber of Commerce and sat on Greenwich Council’s Local Strategic Partnership Board and Local Neighbourhood Renewal Board.

He agreed to talk to Greenwich.co.uk and I began by asking for his reaction to the Planning Inspector’s decision:

We are delighted with the Inspectors Decision and we are particularly pleased with the Inspector taking all of our comments on board as submitted in our planning application including our proposal to provide limited on-site parking. This site is very well connected to excellent local public transport connections and the design we have proposed for the affordable 6 storey 47 bedrooms hotel is of high quality and this development will further help local community and businesses to attract new inward investment. Our objective always has been to work with local people and when built we aim to recruit staff locally.

Do you have a timescale for beginning and completing construction?

We are planning to start construction early into new the year with a target to complete the development in time for the start of the London 2012 Olympics – it is a disappointment that we have lost 5 months due to us having to make an Appeal even though Planning Officers had this development ‘Recommended for Approval’ back in March 2010.

Do you think people will be happy to stay at a hotel so close to the busy A102?

Greenwich is very fortunate to have high quality tourism attractions including world class O2 Arena, Historic Greenwich Town Centre, London 2012 Olympics, etc. and Greenwich Council desires to increase its tourism-based economy but in some cases, lacked hotel beds to meet such a demand. The location of this hotel will be very visible from the A102, is very well placed and convenient for our guests and visitors to be able to get in and out with ease without the needing to further clogg up Greenwich Town Centre with traffic. All guest bedrooms are located away from the dual carriageway and by introducing good quality double glazing windows throughout, our guests will be able to enjoy the convenience, clean and comfortable bedrooms whilst paying affordable prices.


Thanks to Dazza for venturing out in the rain this afternoon to get this photo which shows where the hotel will be built.

Safety mesh across listed Victorian railings proposed

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The Greenwich Foundation is proposing to place a safety mesh across a stretch of Victorian iron railings on the Thames Path.

The Foundation, a charity established to maintain the Old Royal Naval College, has identified a section of the Grade II listed railings in the “knuckle” of the river wall opposite the statue of Lord Nelson  as a potential hazard to children.

A planning application for “improvements” would see panels of stainless steel mesh placed across the decorative railings on the river side “to prevent children falling through”.

When asked if the application was in response to any specific incident, a spokesperson for the Foundation told Greenwich.co.uk that the proposal was a “precautionary measure”.


Photo from the planning application showing the railings with a temporary mesh in place.

Thanks to Jim for the use of the photo at the beginning of the article.

Tim Barnes awarded honorary degree

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A former chair of the Greenwich Society has been honoured by the University of Greenwich for his work with law graduates.

Tim Barnes QC was awarded an honorary degree, Doctor of Laws (HonLLD), at a ceremony at the chapel of the Old Royal Naval College on Monday.

The award  is for Tim’s work as chair and founder member of the university’s Law Advisory Forum which was set up three years ago to improve the employability prospects of Greenwich Law graduates

Mr Barnes commented, “This is one of the most beautiful and historic campuses in the world. We owe a debt of gratitude to the University of Greenwich for coming here. Greenwich Law students are the best turned out, best presented and most articulate that attend events at our chambers. They display the commitment and enthusiasm that are crucial qualities for a legal career.”

Kim Everett, from the University of Greenwich, says: “We owe a great debt to Tim for all he has contributed to the university through the Law Advisory Forum. He firmly believes that our Law students can achieve great things and should have the opportunity to do just that.”

Plans for Cutty Sark Gardens revamp submitted

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A planning application has been lodged for the revamp of Cutty Sark Gardens.

The proposals will make Cutty Sark Gardens an “attractive place to stay and a place to linger”, say Dutch designers, OKRA.

The designs include  6,540  sq m of new stone covering, less steps to a make it more pedestrian friendly, an interactive “wet floor” feature, clear cyclist route and green planters.

The interactive water element will be designed to mirror the tidal movements of the Thames – water flowing over the element when the tide is high and draining off when it is low.

A pre-application consultation on the plans was undertaken at the town centre pedestrianisation exhibition back in June of this year.

OKRA, who are partners on Croydon’s Wellesley Road and Parklane redevelopment project, describe as Cutty Sark Gardens as a “pioneering place with international allure” but go on to say, perhaps contradictorily, that “awareness that one of London’s most highest profile public squares is lacking in allure is becoming widespread”.

The “gardens” are part of the Mayor of London’s Great Spaces Initiative, and the council secured funding for the scheme as one of the key legacy projects for Greenwich resulting from being a Host Borough for London 2012.

Restoration work on the Cutty Sark itself – the centre piece of Cutty Sark Gardens – is due to complete sometime in 2011.

London 2012 ticketing draws angry response from council leader

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London 2012 organisers have today announced their ticketing policy – provoking a furious response from Greenwich Council leader, Chris Roberts.

Prices for the events start at £20 and go all the way up to an eye-watering £2,012 for the best seats at the closing spectacular.

Ticketing for each event is broken down into different tiers, with tickets for the equestrian events in Greenwich Park having a starting price of £20 for preliminary rounds and rising to £275 for the best tickets for the finals of the equestrian jumping.

Prices for the basketball events at the “North Greenwich Arena”, as the O2 Arena will be known at the time of the games, start at £35 during the Quarter Finals and rise to £425 for the best seats for the Men’s Final.

Some events, such as the preliminary rounds of the equestrian events, will have “special pricing” which means kids under 16 only have to pay their age and pensioners will pay £16.

The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, to make available to London children for free, adding to an existing pool of 50,000 free tickets which means that one in eight school kids in London will get free entry – but with no preferential treatment for host boroughs such as Greenwich.

Cllr Chris Roberts, Leader of Greenwich Council, reacted angrily to the news that only an eighth of London’s school children will get access to free tickets:

“Olympic organisers have had five years to plan a ticket allocation which would permit the children of the Host Boroughs to attend the Games taking place on their own doorsteps. Instead 7 out of 8 schoolchildren will be denied that chance.

“The children of the East End were used by the Olympic organisers to win the bid for the Games in Singapore, they have been called upon endlessly to take part in photo-opportunities to build support for the Games and are even used in consultation groups to advise on how to run the Games and build a legacy. In return only one thing has been expected – a ticket to see the events. At least 7 out of 8 children will be locked out by LOCOG.

“Repeatedly, the Olympic Host Boroughs have offered to buy tickets for their children but have been refused. LOCOG don’t want the authentic East End , they don’t want our money, they certainly don’t want our kids.”

Tickets will go on sale in March 2011 and you can pre-register now.

UPDATED

Cllr Nigel Fletcher, Deputy Leader of the Conservatives on Greenwich Council  and their spokesman on Culture and the Olympics, commented this evening:

“It’s great there will be large numbers of free tickets for children across London – and that Boris is ensuring there will be even more. Whilst it might be nice for us to have more as a host Borough, that was never the understanding I had from LOCOG of the arrangement, and I’m rather surprised at Chris Roberts’ outburst, when he must have known that.”

Council proposes four year pay freeze

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Greenwich Council is proposing to freeze the pay of its workers for the next four years.

A statutory consultation with workers must be undertaken before the freeze can be implemented but the council says that he measure would save £2.4 million – the equivalent of “77 front line jobs”.

The council is having to find savings after being warned to expect a 40% cut to its grant from central government.

Councillor Peter Brooks, Deputy Leader of the Council, commented:

“This is a consultation  – not a firm decision.  We are bracing ourselves for the Coalition Government’s spending review on October 20th and must allow ourselves the flexibility to be able to make savings where we can.  We have always indicated that front line services must come first. We have been told to prepare for a 40% reduction in funds and have no choice but to plan for what might lie ahead.

Johnny Depp’s surprise visit to Greenwich school

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Hollywood star, Johnny Depp, made a surprise visit to a Greenwich school this week.

The actor, who is currently shooting the latest Pirates of the Caribbean movie in Greenwich, turned up at Meridian Primary School in Old Woolwich Road.

Accompanied by a motley crew of pirates, Depp, who plays Captain Jack Sparrow in the movie, remained in character throughout the visit.

His visit was prompted by a letter from year 5 student, Bea Delap, asking for assistance with a mutiny. The star’s advice for the the young mutineers, who gathered for a special assembly, was that they remember to brush their teeth.

Filming for “Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides”, which also stars Penelope Cruz, Geoffrey Rush and Ian McShane,  has been taking place at a large set at the Old Royal Naval College.

The unexpected visit to the local primary school drew media attention from around the world.