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The community is more important than money
 WHY
should money rule everything? St. Joseph’s Parish Centre in Highgate
in North London which has been in existence since 1975 now finds itself
under threat from the usual relentless march of land-hungry developers
in collusion this time with the Passionist Order who own the land.
A committee from the centre has been formed to fight the proposals and
they need your support.
A parish centre is a necessary part of a community and in these times
of great division and uncertainty it provides a vital local service and
a meeting place for many diverse groups.
Frost Associates who will be the project managers on behalf of the Passionist
Order say that while the existing stand-alone centre will be demolished
there will be community facilities within the monastery building.
That sounds to me like a massive smokescreen.
The existing centre is used by a huge number of groups and associations.
The Whittington Hospital has meetings and seminars there. Drama groups,
dancing classes, baby groups and many other sections of the community
are regular users.
It is a community centre in every sense of the word and there is no way
that vague community facilities in a monastery can replace it.
There is also an environmental issue. The centre is located in an area
of beautiful green space and while the committee are not opposed to re-development
they readily admit that the grounds are under-used they are objecting
to what they describe as over-development.
I suspect that a community centre in the eyes of developers would be
seen to undermine the value of the proposed expensive private houses and
flats and we all know that in such a profit-driven world this would not
be desirable.
However there is another point here that needs to be recognised.
St. Joseph’s like a lot of centres over the years has been created
and maintained by money raised from the local community and to simply
dismiss these people when it suits the finances of a religious order cannot
be right.
A lot of people have given their time and energy to the service of their
community over the years and to override their concerns seems more than
a little high-handed and dismissive and in fact is downright arrogant
and insulting.
Given the amount of space involved at the site it must be possible to
reach a satisfactory compromise but somehow you just know it is going
to be hard fought.
Ultimately the planners have to be accountable to the public and they
should not exist simply to maximise profits for developers whoever they
may be.
Islington Council may need to be reminded of this.
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