My colleague James Barber has been working with extraordinary dedication on a project that is set to deliver a brand new Grove Vale library - at no cost to the tax payer.

Like many East Dulwich residents I like the current garden centre - my family use it regularly (although not for compost because they don”t sell peat-free!) .  But the site has been sold by the owners for development. Left to their own devices most developers would have proposed a development of flats with a food outlet on the ground floor ( an M&S Simply Food seems to be the most popular East Dulwich rumour…). It is difficult to see how such a development could have been successfully opposed - even if local councillors turned it down, the likelihood is that Government inspectors would have over-turned  such a decision.

So James has been working to improve the development and in particular to persuade the developers to pay for the provision of a library on the ground floor. (The  exisiting Grove Vale Library is cramped, unfit for purpose and the council’s lease is coming to an end.)

Last night the development was approved by the Planning Committee.  The development is not without its objectors.   But I was pleased that the bulk and massing of the building has been reduced since initial plans were publisherd in the local paper.  The provision of a fantastic new library certainly makes the development much more acceptable.  I hope that the new library will act as a catalyst to improve Grove Vale. By increasing pedestrian activity there should be a positive knock-on effect for local traders as well as making the area feel safer.   Well done James!