London social household residents urge to rewrite development plans
Residents of London's public housing blocks will be left without a voice in construction projects that could demolish their homes unless drastic changes are made to the Mayor of London's plans, according to some city politicians and estate residents. Mayor of London Sadiq Khan is asking for feedback by March 14 on draft guidelines for development projects on London's social housing estates - large-scale complexes of apartments built mostly by government for low income residents. Khan said projects will have to meet these guidelines to be eligible for his planning applications support or grants from a 3.15 billion pound ($3.8 billion) fund for London housing. The plan is intended to "put local people at the heart" of dozens of schemes reshaping the city's skyline by demolishing or upgrading housing estates, and guarantee low-income Londoners a right to remain in central areas, said Khan. London's estates, many built in the 1960s and '70s, have become flashpoints in the capital's housing squeeze as local government-led schemes have bulldozed concrete high-rises to erect higher density modern developments. After consulting with residents, Sian Berry, London Assembly member for the Green Party, said the guidelines are "worse than useless" and "need rewriting from scratch".
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