New workspaces, social hubs, green improvements and training opportunities will be on offer in Wood Green, thanks to a major funding boost from the Mayor of London.
As part of ambitious £2million plans, Haringey Council has been awarded a £900,000 grant from the Greater London Authority’s Good Growth Fund – which opens the door to a string of opportunities for the community.
The scheme – called Connecting Wood Green – covers three areas; a meanwhile project at the Olympia Trading Estate, The Library Hub Project (Post Office Unit), and general improvements including public art commissions. The projects will boost locals’ skills and job opportunities, as we team up with partners to provide training for our residents.
It is one of two schemes in Haringey boosted by the Good Growth Fund. The council has also received £430,000 toward the cost of establishing a Tailoring Academy for London in Seven Sisters. The proposed academy will deliver hundreds of new jobs, apprenticeships and training opportunities. Finalised plans for the academy are subject to Cabinet approval.
The Good Growth Fund supports projects that are “inclusive, innovative and which demonstrate an outstanding approach to challenges faced across London”.
Connecting Wood Green will deliver changes that help to draw people from the High Road and Station Road to the area around the current Chocolate Factory and Coburg Road, transforming it into a thriving, bustling part of Haringey. The plans will nurture existing and new businesses and communities and create new and improved space for businesses and social enterprises.
- The Olympia Trading Estate meanwhile project: This is an exciting, mixed-use social enterprise scheme. Five industrial units and three surrounding buildings will be transformed as a meanwhile project before work begins in 2020 on a new, permanent scheme there. The scheme will safeguard many existing businesses and create space for new tenants and for cultural and community activities which will draw more people to the area.
- Library Hub Project (the Post Office): Two units on the Wood Green Library site are vacant, including the former Post Office unit. We will work with local organisations to transform vacant units into workspace and space for workshops, classes and meetings and to create a hub for consultation and engagement activities for the wider regeneration programme.
- Improvements, including Penstock Tunnel: We will develop proposals to deliver improvements along the circular route connecting Station Road, the High Road and area around the Chocolate Factory and Coburg Road and entrance to Alexandra Park at the Penstock Tunnel. Work will include the refurbishment of Penstock Tunnel, Library arcade improvements and investment in green infrastructure, public realm, public art, lighting and signage.
Connecting Wood Green is a scheme to boost the area as it awaits wider transformation. The plans encourage engagement and participation, creating opportunities for residents to really get involved in the area’s future.
It follows the success of meanwhile projects The Green Rooms hotel and Blue House Yard. Another project, the Wood Green Works business hub, is due to open in April.
From February 1 to March 16 we consulted on wider plans for Wood Green that would pave the way for 4,000 new jobs, 6,400 new homes and a transformed, bustling and sustainable town centre full of opportunities.
Cllr Claire Kober, Leader of Haringey Council, said:
This funding is great news for Haringey, offering loads of opportunities for our residents and local businesses. Our application pledged to provide new workspaces, social hubs and employment support, and to build on the fantastic success of other meanwhile projects. The vision is that Wood Green will be a thriving town centre, bursting with opportunity, and the Connecting Wood Green project is a brilliant step towards achieving that.
London’s Deputy Mayor for Planning, Regeneration and Skills, Jules Pipe, said:
The Mayor and I are determined to use the Good Growth Fund to challenge preconceptions about how regeneration takes place. This project is a great example of how we can work with local communities on projects in a way that will help ensure the benefits are felt by all.
Nick Hartwright, behind the Olympia Trading Estate project, said:
We feel very privileged to be part of the Connecting Wood Green bid. We’re going to create an accessible, mixed-use creative hub at the Olympia Trading Estate that has the local community at its core. We are going to create jobs, protect jobs, provide opportunities and inspire and educate people. The site will include everything from shared workspace areas to community gardens and numerous hospitality options. Tenants that prosper during the meanwhile phase will transition through into a final scheme built for perpetuity. This is all about sustainable, long-term regeneration. We can’t wait to get started.
Find out more about plans for Wood Green here: http://www.haringey.gov.uk/planning-and-building-control/planning/planning-policy/local-plan/wood-green-area-action-plan
