26 June (Part 2) - Land forgotten and land forfeited
As was to be expected now that
the Lesnes Abbey landscaping contractor has
gone bust, nothing much happened with the £4·2 million park regeneration this
week. The pond viewing platform is gradually disappearing beneath the weeds - and
Photo 2 is a week old - but some more rusty ironmongery has made an appearance
in Abbey Road. So that's more than a month with no progress. Bexley Council has
yet to announce what the problem is, only BiB has done that.
Network Rail has done rather better. Two weeks ago the new Dartford bound
platform barely existed but now it is almost a continuous twelve car length.
Similarly, two weeks ago the southern station ‘wing’ which is destined to be a shop
wasn’t there at all. Now it is just a concrete pour away from being a completed
shell. However it’s not good news for everyone.
On
Thursday afternoon while taking photos from the flyover a young lady asked me if
I was the official photographer. Anyone not using a phone to take pictures these
days is assumed to be a professional. Once we established that I am nothing to
do with Crossrail she told me what had happened to her that morning. She said
two Network Rail officials had knocked on her door to tell her that they were
going to take “another two metres” (†) from what remains of her back garden.
From the lady’s description I think the two photos show the house which she owns.
Click image for a better view.
She has been getting very little light and now gets less. Recently the piling
within feet of her property caused structural damage, hopefully superficial but
nevertheless worrying. For this latest land grab there was no prior notice, no
consultation and no compensation. Next day half her small patch of land was gone.
Today I saw the French doors open, there was only just sufficient space.
Last Tuesday I heard several people complaining about the arrogance of Crossrail
officials who have the power of the Crossrail Act 2008 behind them. The lady on
the flyover did nothing to reassure anyone that they were wrong.
The two weekly
Crossrail photo feature has been ‘signed off’. It’s a big one to reflect the
amount of work done. 158 pictures and 17MB. Another one starting soon.
† It looks more like two feet and it is possible that
the grab is temporary during the construction phase only.