Shopkeepers and traders are being “bullied and misled” by Hammersmith and Fulham council over a development plan for Shepherd’s Bush market, a Labour MP claims.
Andy Slaughter, MP for Hammersmith, has also accused the Tory-run council of wasting hundreds of thousands of pounds in legal costs trying to drive the £150 million project through.
Developer Orion wants to demolish 13 shops in Goldhawk Road, including a 100-year-old pie and mash shop frequented by David Beckham, and use the market area for 200 flats and 20 houses. Orion is proposing a new entrance to a revamped food and fabrics market, but some shopkeepers claim that the council has not followed proper procedures in granting planning permission.
A judicial review last year upheld the complaint but the council then granted permission for a second time after following the rules. Market traders have brought a second judicial review against the decision but the local authority has issued compulsory purchase orders on some shops.
A Freedom of Information request by Mr Slaughter revealed that the council spent £182,000 on the first judicial review and £53,000 on the second. The MP said: “This ugly over-development will destroy affordable housing and unique, valued local businesses to build faceless empty investment flats.”
The council said that it was footing the legal bill because both judicial reviews were to do with how it granted planning permission. Council leader Nicholas Botterill said businesses in Goldhawk Road had been offered larger premises in the new development on top of a “generous compensation package”.
