Civic Centre Development Letter to TWBC councillors

Tunbridge Wells Kent TN1 Saturday 8th July 2017

Re: Tunbridge Wells Civic Centre Development

Dear councillor, I am writing to you as a resident of Tunbridge Wells and as the chairman of the Friends of Calverley Grounds about my opposition to the proposed civic development on the west of Calverley Grounds.

I have been following the project since 2015 and am keen to share my views with you.

I am most definitely in favour of progress in Tunbridge Wells to ensure the town remains vibrant with a strong economy, however I am opposed to the development next to (on and under) Calverley Grounds for a number of reasons which I list in brief below: 1. No commercial developer would be allowed to build on part of a public park, so why should the council?

2. Taking land from Calverley Grounds sets a precedent and puts all public parks and other green spaces at risk in Tunbridge Wells and further afield.

3. These two massive buildings on the western edge will overshadow Calverley Grounds and turn a lovely open green space into a park overlooked by office workers and theatre goers.

Evening dappled light on the western edge of Calverley Grounds that will be replaced with solid shadow

4. The scale of the buildings will completely change the atmosphere and character of the park.

Currently the park has soft, green edges with trees and shrubs. This development will add two four to five storey buildings (and higher in places) on the western boundary of the park which will cast a solid shadow over the bowl area during the afternoons and evenings where currently there is dappled evening shade from trees and shrubs of varying heights.

5. The loss of a total of 66 trees on the western part of the park, including a number of large, mature pine trees in the north west corner, as well as the colourful planting of shrubs next to the path beyond the public toilets will completely change the park.

6. The loss of public toilets for park users. Toilets in the theatre are unlikely to be suitable for people with muddy boots or shoes, and may be closed during some periods when the park is busy.

7. The loss of the arcadian view looking down the valley and westward across to the trees on the Common. This is something that attracted Decimus Burton to this site and inspired his design and layout of the Calverley Estate: Calverley Hotel, Calverley Park and Calverley Park Crescent.

This view will completely change as 66 trees will be replaced with two much larger buildings

8. With each design update, the theatre is becoming less economically viable: (a) The number of theatre seats has reduced from 1,500 to 1,200, and less when the orchestra pit is in use on larger shows which need to generate more ticket sales to remain profitable for the theatre. This will increase the level of subsidy required for the theatre. (b) The bar and foyer space has shrunk as the designs have progressed, reducing the money making ability of the bar and cafe, again affecting the ability for the theatre to maximise income. This will also increase the level of subsidy required for the theatre. (c) It would seem that the selection of the site preceded the analysis of the market for a theatre in Tunbridge Wells and the decision on what size of theatre would suit the town and the catchment area. The process has been done in the wrong order. A bigger theatre building could be fitted into the site of the Assembly Hall Theatre and Police Station with more space for articulated trucks at the back with the removal of some of this part of the building. This would also ensure that the civic block remains a group of civic buildings.

9. Vehicle access for the theatre, office and car park does not appear to be good enough: (a) The entrance to the car park appears to be via a small side road off Mount Pleasant halfway up the hill. (b) The main entrance to the theatre and office from Mount Pleasant is being misrepresented in drawings as a wide pedestrian avenue with trees. In reality, it will be busy with lorries servicing the existing shops and offices, plus the new office building and new theatre and also, now,

Hoopers. In addition taxis and coaches will be delivering people to the theatre when shows are on, and a large number of big articulated trucks will be driving through when shows are changing over, and, most probably manoeuvering and parking in the road as access and parking space for articulated trucks is limited. (c) The access and parking for articulated trucks is limited. It would seem that articulated trucks will not be able to turn left off Mount Pleasant, coming down the hill, into Mount Pleasant Avenue between Carluccio's and Sainsbury's without swinging across the oncoming traffic where there are currently bus stops outside the busy railway station.

Grove Hill Road has a high volume of through traffic which is problematic for large vehicles

(d) Exiting through the Hoopers car park onto Grove Hill Road for lorries, coaches, taxis and articulated trucks will cause major traffic problems. Grove Hill Road already has a high volume of traffic as it is a major route through Tunbridge Wells. In addition cars often block Grove Hill Road as they queue to get into the Hoopers car park and vehicles have to give way at the top of Grove Hill Road where it narrows.

10. There is little logic in upgrading one part of the civic centre to something exciting, whilst the other half will be left empty. With the Cultural & Learning Hub about to start, why is the council proposing to vacate the Town Hall and Assembly Hall Theatre, fragmenting the civic centre rather than enhancing it?

11. Borrowing money to spend ÂŁ72 million on a new theatre, civic office and underground car park is not sensible use of our money with the current cuts in public funds.

12. There is no business plan for this massive project. How can such a large multi-million pound project proceed with no business plan? A commercial company would not be allowed to proceed without a business plan.

13. Leaving the existing town hall and theatre with no planned future is very worrying and will leave the centre of town fragmented, yet again, after over 17 years of a derelict and empty cinema site opposite.

14. What is the most likely use of the vacated Town Hall and Assembly Hall Theatre? I believe the most likely use will be residential due to the pressure to expand the number of homes, and the greater returns that can be made from residential property. Is the civic block in the centre of town the right place for residential apartments, next to the exciting Cultural & Learning Hub? I do not think so.

15. I have not seen any plans for the landscaping work on Calverley Grounds for this project, or any budget allocated for this work. With the increase in footfall, loss of trees, new buildings, and the park becoming the jewel in the crown for Tunbridge Wells, major work will need to take place to review the park, create a master plan for the park and improve the planting (trees, shrubs and flowerbeds), paths, other facilities and the other entrances.

16. I am aware that some members of TWODS and RTWSO have concerns about the new theatre.

These concerns include the following: (a) Local groups may not be able to afford to use a new theatre as the costs to use the venue are likely to be more than the Assembly Hall Theatre. This would be a backward step in promoting local community arts. (b) The theatre design appears to be suited to West End productions and is unlikely to suit some types of production, especially those that use non-amplified sound.

17. I have concerns about the accuracy of the answers to the FAQs and Myths on the new Tunbridge Wells Civic Centre website, www.twciviccentre.co.uk. Some answers are accurate, some miss details that make the answer misleading and some suggest certainty where there is none. E.g. (a) "Will the existing Town Hall and Assembly Hall become a new cinema site ‘grot spot’ in the centre of town?" has a very definite answer of "No". There is not this level of certainty that someone will want to purchase and redevelop the buildings. Council documents say that one of the reasons for not remaining in these buildings was due to the high redevelopment costs. (b) "Where will the new commercial office space be built? The development would be built on Mount Pleasant car park adjacent to Calverley Grounds." If someone reads this FAQ standalone, it is misleading. The full answer is that the commercial office space will be built on the Mount Pleasant car park, some of the space used by the dental surgery (former park keeper's lodge) and the public toilets, and 993 square metres of park land. It is important that the details published by the council provide the full facts.

I could add to this list of points, but I think there are enough here to give you good reasons why you should vote to oppose progressing with the proposed development any further.

My view, and the view of a large number of others in Tunbridge Wells and nearby, is that the plans to build a new office block, underground car park and theatre next to Calverley Grounds, and vacating the existing civic buildings, are not the best way to modernise Tunbridge Wells and ensure it is a successful town for the future. The plans will fragment the existing civic buildings and harm a Grade II listed park, and create a greater financial burden on the borough council as the theatre is shoehorned into an unsuitable space, leading to additional subsidies and reluctance of large touring theatre companies to use a theatre due to the poor access and parking.

Thank you for taking the time to read my letter.

Yours sincerely

Nicholas Pope Chairman, Friends of Calverley Grounds