NEIGHBOURS of the UK’s first ‘Asda superstore town centre’ say it’ll turn their area into a soulless clone of central London – and they’re fearful of losing their jobs.
The supermarket chain has partnered with housebuilders Barratt Redrow to transform a borough in West London; however, they are facing opposition from both locals and the police.
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Plans include building five tower blocks, 35 storeys high, to fit 1,500 homes and house 4,000 residents.
Slap bang in the centre, will be a 60,000 square foot superstore, decorated with greenery to replicate a leafy community hub.
If plans succeed, Park Royal will become the UK’s first Asda superstore town centre.
Tom Marshal has lived in the area with his family for many years.
He said: “When I was younger, I remember people calling this place the Canary Wharf of West London.
“They were trying to make Park Royal the next Canary Wharf.
“Now, I’ve been to Canary Wharf, and I’ve got nothing against it, but there’s not much of a community there.
“If they’re [Asda] trying to make this place the next Canary Wharf, there will be no community here either.
“It doesn’t fill me with much enthusiasm.”
Tower blocks aren’t the answer to a better community, Tom explained.
Even though dozens have been built in the area, Tom says he’s hardly seen anyone move in.
Other locals agree with Tom that the area will lose its character with the new development.
Maria Thompson, visiting the local hospital with her daughter Aisha, doesn’t believe housing should be placed on top of superstores.
She explained how a similar structure has been built in Harrow.
Maria said: “It also looks stupid and silly and really brings down the area, like it has done in Harrow.”
She also voiced her concerns in regard to potential crime increases.
Kids living in the flats could even take advantage of back entrances to the store.
Maria explained how she’s seen youths steal from a Morrisons branch in Harrow with a similar setup.
They’d nip in through the back entrance then run back upstairs to their flats.
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She added, “It’s because they know they can get away with it. They don’t have to go through the front entrance, they can use the back.
Another concern is fire safety, Maria warned. One in-store fire could set all the flats off, she said.
Also visiting the Park Royal Hospital that day was local Martina Owczrek.
Like Maria and Aisha, Martina sang the hospital’s praises but admitted, “4,000 people is a lot”.
Right now, securing an appointment is no hassle, but that could all change.
She added: “It’ll definitely make Asda overcrowded because everyone will want to go downstairs to shop, along with the same GP.
“It’ll become a lot more difficult to get an appointment,” she said.
One local, Richard Smith, finds he tends to drift towards Ealing for a better sense of community.
But if Park Royal is “tidied up”, the area could improve.
“A couple of corners around the centre aren’t the nicest. If it’s all tidied up, that would be positive,” declared the local.
Richard hasn’t noticed a huge police presence in the area either and wouldn’t mind some more.
Meanwhile, locals, including Xiwen Huang and Maria Lopez, think Asda is the best thing about the area, so why not expand?
Xiwen Huang lives a 20-minute walk away from the Asda. She said: “You can buy anything you want at an Asda superstore.“
Maria Lopez added: “It’s already the place people go to to drink, eat or buy something.”
The end of the road
Although the majority of locals fear for overcrowding, for one local business, Asda’s plans will mean they’ll have to close down.
The owner of Hand Car Wash, who wished to remain anonymous has been based in Asda’s car park since 2008.
He heard about the development plans through a neighbour.
“We’re going to be closed down if they build and all our people will be removed. I have more than 11 people working here and myself also.”
“We will be no business, we will be only flats. This is not business. It’s business for them, but not for us.”
Other store workers, such as Shahrzad Ghoddoosi, hope business will improve if more people move to Park Royal.
It comes as the Metropolitan Police have threatened to block Asda’s proposed “town centre” amid concerns over public safety.
The authority is demanding hundreds of thousands of pounds in developer contributions so that it can deal with the expected surge in residents and “assure the safety of the local community.”
Police say the project will put “unacceptable pressure” on its staff and budget, while burdening current general infrastructure.
In a letter to the OPDC, Jonathan Boulton from the Met said: “Without the necessary contribution the development will be unacceptable in planning terms and permission should not be granted.
“The lack of capacity in existing infrastructure to accommodate the population growth and associated demands occasioned by the development means that it is necessary for the developer of the site to provide a contribution so the situation might be remedied.
“Without the necessary contribution to meet police needs there is a formal objection to the development on sustainability grounds and because the development is unacceptable without the necessary contribution.”
Barratt Redrow responds
Responding to the concerns from locals, developers Barratt Redrow said the area’s transformation would “support the local economy by providing hundreds of jobs”.
Plus, a third of the 1,500 homes will be “affordable” and £21million will be contributed to the region for new community projects.
Craig Carson, Managing Director of Barratt West London, told The Sun, the hub will offer a range of new facilities.
He said: “Our plans for the town centre will unlock new commercial opportunities for local businesses and create a positive new hub for the community with a high-quality public realm space planned, alongside new shops, restaurants, health and wellness facilities.
“Our plans allow for Asda’s existing Park Royal Superstore to remain fully open and continue to serve the local community whilst work is carried out on the new store development.
“We believe that the redevelopment of Park Royal, which sits at the heart of the Old Oak and Park Royal Development Corporation major regeneration area, will have a wide-reaching impact on West London as a whole.”
He assured they will be working closely with Asda and stakeholders, including the Metropolitan Police, Greater London Authority and Central Middlesex Hospital during the pre-application period.
Asda has been approached for comment.
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What to do if you oppose a development
Your local planning authority (LPA) makes decisions on planning applications.
According to GOV.UK, you can appeal a planning decision if any of the following apply:
- You were refused planning permission for reasons that you think go against the LPA’s development plan or planning policy (you can usually find these on their website)
- You were granted planning permission with conditions you object to – you’ll need to explain why you think they’re unnecessary, unenforceable, vague, unreasonable or irrelevant
- The LPA has not given you a decision on your application and 8 weeks have passed since the date they told you they’d received it (or a different deadline you agreed with them has passed)
For major projects, you can only appeal if 13 weeks have passed.
Examples of a major project include a development with 10 or more dwellings, or a building with floor space of more than 1,000 square metres.
Use the appeal a householder planning decision service if you want to appeal a refused application for a smaller project, like an extension, conservatory or loft conversion.
You can also appeal a listed building consent decision.
