THE PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT

The Development

Planning Application - 2017/2897

Exclusive, Expensive, Unaffordable, and Divisive

The planning application was amended on 27 November 2019 and would, in summary, now involve:

the loss of 39 of the 60 units for small independent traders on the ground floor, with space lost being used to service the proposed offices and flats on the upper floors
the loss of 50% of the basement's market storage, with the remainder to be offices
conversion of the 2 upper floors to "high standard" offices with only 10% to be affordable
a new 3rd storey for 1x2-bed and 4x3-bed "very high standard" luxury flats.
landscaping, instead of extending the building onto, its forecourt's open space.

As of December 2019, the Shopping Village is defined by Hackney Council as an Asset of Community Value. The proposed development would completely undermine its existing uses as an affordable retail outlet and artists’ studio space.

It would also involve massive rent hikes and evictions, with negative consequences for the black and minority business owners on the ground floor. The application should be assessed under the provisions of the Equality Act 2010.

Shopping Village purchased in 2016 for £6.5m
New majority owner is Larochette, headquartered in the British Virgin Islands tax haven.
Larochette is connected to Ziser, a UK property business with significant East London holdings.
The development is now managed by Rainbow Properties, a property management company based in West Hampstead.

The proposal is to EVICT all current tenants.

Current uses:

Basement:

Storage consisting of around 50 units, these are all full and are used on a daily basis by traders in the Indoor market, traders in the outdoor market and the very small shops that line the sides of the market. If this facility is removed it will affect the retail amenity of the street as a whole and compromise the market.

Ground Floor:

Consists of around 50 retail and storage units which are rented by the smallest of independent businesses. Some of these businesses have been resident since 1984 and are an intrinsic part of the Ridley Road and wider Dalston community. Again, the storage units are used by the wider outdoor market, as well as the smaller shops flanking the market who have historically depended upon this facility to operate.

First Floor:

The first and second floors are currently occupied by SIXTY artists and makers who have been in the space for the past 12 years. They are intrinsic to the character of the area, and rent studio spaces that they come to every day. Dalston's reputation as an artistic and cultural centre is in part attributable to the smaller affordable spaces such as these which allow artists to create and contribute within an urban environment.

Second Floor:

The second and first floors are currently occupied by SIXTY artists and makers who have been in the space for the past 12 years. They are intrinsic to the character of the area, and rent studio spaces that they come to every day. Dalston's reputation as an artistic and cultural centre is in part attributable to the smaller affordable spaces such as these which allow artists to create and contribute within an urban environment.

Third Floor: