Get to Burgess Park Bike track tomorrow between 1pm and 3pm..the latest
proposals for the park and the bike and BMX tracks. I went over them
yesterday with Rebecca Towers at the Council....my view is that the new
plans for the park are much much better....more organic growth of what's
best already, more trees retained and on the way, better lake
enlargement, much better entrance from Walworth Road and Old Kent Road.

All the work needs to be done by March 2012.

The Albany Road car park goes, the play area on Albany Road stays and
the petrol gokarts will either go or be electric. Good. The dirt bike
track we created 6 years ago goes and gets amalgamated into a national
(not Olympic, good...too exclusive) 24/7 bmx track that's 100mx60m on
the site of the derelict playground here:
> http://www.streetmap.co.uk/map.srf?X=532960&Y=177788&A=Y&Z=110

That open access is a huge step forward..it'll be BMX club only at times
and open to all the rest of the time. Still trying to work out how
Brenton's workshops and street bikebase stuff can carry on.

Got some good improvements in at the meet yesterday.....including
dumping of needle-style new bike racks...the same as we got rid of at St
Mary's Churchyard E&C much to the amusing impotent fury of the
Chicago-based non-cycling landscapers who weren't a bit used to being
challanged.

But go see the new plans and comment. Sorry for short notice.

Note that Southwark Cyclists meeting on Wednesday decided to back the
Save King Stairs Garden campaign and get Thames Water's work moved
upstream a tad to Chamber Wharf. More later.

Bad news from Sgt Mark Stevens today...the Southwark Police Bike Squad
has been disbanded in the cuts.

Convoys Wharf is half Lewisham's riverside, by the Dog&Bell. The closed
wharf has been mothballed for years and the long expected planning
application has now arrived. Site here:
> http://www.streetmap.co.uk/map.srf?X=536999&Y=178165&A=Y&Z=110

Application here:
> www.lewisham.gov.uk/Environment/Planning/MajorDevelopments/ConvoysWharf.htm

Huge....3,514 new flats etc etc. Simply mad to have 2,316 new
car-parking spaces in that tight street area (ed: or anywhere!). This
hugely historic site needs regeneration and opening up the Thames Path
etc but not more cars. Loads of big new sites coming up in Deptford etc
and not enough people are fretting about all these new cars.

Had to go home after work last night to pick up forgotten bike lights
and didn't feel like going out again...but did. No one at the wet and
windy Needle so went straight to the Old Kings Head and not very
informative Underground London talk. Bring back the talking mongeeses.


Barry
07905 889 005