Summer 2010 Newsletter

Summer Newsletter, 2010

“Summer” Garden Party

The annual Belgravia Residents Association Garden Party was held on June 14 in Eaton Square gardens. Although “summer” hadn’t quite arrived, no one seemed to have been put off by the drizzle and everyone seemed to enjoy the evening. We had three innovations this year – live music provided by the Dixieland Band (known to many from their performances at Boisdale), some “door prizes” which created a buzz of excitement, and some activities for children. During the evening, we presented the BRA Awards of Excellence to local traders. Congratulations to this year’s recipients, who were selected following nominations made via the forms included in prior issues of Belgravia Magazine: The Beresford Clinic, Keencare Chemist, Mayhew Newsagent, Motcombs Restaurant and Printus.

Many thanks to the donors of prizes – the Friends of Music (two season tickets to the Eaton Square concerts), The Palm Restaurant (lunch for two at the home of the “classic American steak” on Motcomb Street) and Boisdale (dinner for two at the famed Scottish restaurant and jazz club on Eccleston Street). Many thanks, too, to the Shepherd Neame Brewery and the Duke of Wellington pub for providing Pimm’s and soft drinks and to Chesterton Humberts (Knightsbridge/Belgravia real estate office) for donating the wine.

Our next event will be the Annual General Meeting on Monday 8th November at the Society for Chemical Industry, 15 Belgrave Square. As well as a review of the year’s activities, members will vote on the proposed new constitution for the BRA (a copy of which is on our website). If you are not yet a member of the BRA, please note the membership information below.
Current Issues

As we move into the Autumn, the BRA will continue our focus on key areas of concern to local residents: traffic, safety, environment and planning. If you have questions or suggestions, please contact our sub-committee chairmen directly – Anthony Lake for traffic (Transport@belgraviaresidents.org.uk), Denis Jackson for safety and environment (environment@belgraviaresidents.org.uk) and Randa Hanna for planning (planning@belgraviaresdients.org.uk).

By the time this issue of Belgravia Magazine is published, we hope the works on Elizabeth Street will have been completed. We have worked closely with Grosvenor during the works to try to minimize disruption and, whilst there were some unfortunate problems for residents and traders, we were pleased with the efforts made to resolve these problems. We now look forward to a return to normal traffic patterns and normal shopping along and around Elizabeth Street.

We continue our active dialogue with Qatari Diar and Westminster City Council with regard to the Chelsea Barracks development. The current focus is on the siting of the affordable housing and its impact on the overall density of the project. We continue to monitor and discuss the impact of the proposed project on traffic and services for the surrounding area.

Another proposed development, Johnson House on Ebury Street, is attracting attention. We are discussing with the developers and the architects the impact of the proposals on the area – in particular the length of the frontage and its proximity to the street.

We also have been paying close attention to tree protection orders and the apparent ease with which Westminster City Council is approving plans that result in loss of trees and vegetation. Trees are a vital component of the local environment and take a long time to grow – thus, we think it is important to do what we can to protect the “green” of Belgravia.

On Kinnerton Street, there are currently problems with regard to the flow of traffic and noise resulting from construction projects and we are working to try to address these issues.

Many residents have been commenting recently on what appears to be an increase in dog waste and related plastic bags on the streets. We will be working to try to address this problem and welcome suggestions from residents about new schemes that might be put in place to keep our streets friendly for canines and clean for humans.
Membership

We rely on membership dues to fund our printing costs, mailings, etc. If you are not yet a member, please complete the attached form and return with your annual membership fee of just £20.

Volunteer!

All of the work of the BRA is done by volunteers. Please contact me or any committee chairman (at the addresses listed above) if you would like to volunteer to help with any of the work of the BRA or if you would like to discuss any concerns.

In Memoriam

It is with sadness that we note the death of local resident Marianne Hodges. Marianne was killed in a traffic accident at the vehicle entrance to Marks & Spencer on King’s Road on June 23. She was well-known to many residents on and around Eaton Terrace as she greeted us with “Hello, my friend” on her almost daily walks toward Sloane Square and beyond. She always took interest in neighbours and their family members. We offer our condolences to her family.