The Wimbledon Society is pleased to see that the GLA is taking over the AELTC’s planning application to develop the former Wimbledon Park Golf Course as an industrial tennis complex. They will now become the Planning Authority in place of Merton and Wandsworth Councils.
The AELTC’s claim that they would establish a 23 acre public park out of the golf course land is misleading. The land to be set aside for this includes the existing golf club house and car park, the proposed central maintenance hub and other areas that would never be open to the public. In reality, it would only be 17 acres. And it would be a permissive park, not a public one, as the AELTC would close it before, during and after the Championships and at any other time that they wish to.
The AELTC consistently state they have consulted the local community. They have not engaged with the Wimbledon Society or with the many Residents’ Associations that surround their site and all of which are opposed to the development. We remain willing to talk to them.
The GLA statement recognises that this application has London-wide significance. The threat to build on the old golf course is just one of about 50 sites around London that are at risk of being lost to development, largely by big sporting interests. If the AELTC are successful with this application, it would set a precedent that could see the loss of much more open space in the capital. London is being championed as the world’s first “National Park City” precisely because it has so much open space available to its residents. The GLA has policies that support the protection of the environment and the health of Londoners. We now look to them to refuse this application.
The “Save Wimbledon Park” petition now has more than 17,000 signatures. Please support it at www.change.org/SaveWimbledonPark.