Cllr Chris Philp and I this morning visited the site on Alexandra Road that Network Rail has taken control of. Later I met with one of the concerned residents.
Frankly I now think Network Rail has been allowed to get away with far too much here, and I'm going to get council officers looking more closely at this and how we can retrieve things as far as possible.
Network Rail says it needed access to this plot of land to work on a retaining railway wall that is weak. As a result it knocked down a wall and wiped out the communal garden of Moore Court. It gave no notice to residents.
But looking at the rather complex criss-crossing railway tracks from within Moore Court, it is very unclear why Network Rail needed this land - it isn't close to the affected wall, and Network Rail already has plenty of space on the Haines site which is much closer to the problem. There is no evidence on the Moore Court garden site of any access onto the railway, which as the reason Network Rail gave Camden officers. It seems they have just grabbed as much space as possible near the problem to give themselves maximum working room, at the expense of residents! There is plenty of space as far as I could see on the Haines site. The photo above shows the garden that has been destroyed and the different railway lines.
On the garden site there is now a cabin in which construction staff are sleeping - and urinating outside.
Moore Court residents pay service charge for this garden to be maintained by Notting Hill HA, yet Camden Council says it is the head leaseholder but is legally obliged to hand it over to Network Rail when they need it.
I am going to contact senior Camden officers now and try and get some clarity on these questions:
- who actually owns the garden plot and with what conditions?
- can we now enforce better working practices by Network Rail on the site, including the behaviour of its staff and contractors
- can we get proper reassurances from Network Rail on timescale and proper restitution as a garden?
- can we get an explanation from Network Rail as to why their consultation was so poor in this case?
We all realise that sometimes railway work is essential, but I think we need to consider whether in local areas with a big railway footprint we don't need a better local forum which really forces better local engagement from Network Rail.
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The residents of Moore Court are still in shock at the way Network Rail treated their garden. The workmen even threw debris from the shrubs and trees that they were pulling up on to the railway line!! They also said that there was a 24 hr security man there because gypsies may take over the plot. Who can protect us from them?
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