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His Excellency Volodymyr Khandogiy Ambassador of Ukraine and Aleksandr Lukyanchenko, Mayor of the City of Donetsk, will visit West Norwood Cemetery on Wednesday, 13 November to lay a wreath on the grave of John Hughes. Hughes developed the first iron foundry in what was then the Russian Empire, and the small town he constructed around the foundry grew into Donetsk, now Ukraine’s second largest city. The official party will be welcomed by members of the Friends of West Norwood Cemetery who researched Hughes’ burial and managed the restoration of his massive headstone, which had fallen into disrepair. The Friends were helped in this by journalists from Donetsk News and a generous donation from the Ukrainian Development Foundation, with the support of family descendants, Glamorgan Archives, the Borough of Lambeth and the Diocese of Southwark. People will gather in the cemetery at 10.30am for a simple wreath-laying ceremony at 11.00. The Mayor will then depart for Cardiff to open an Art Exhibition featuring Hughesovska/Donetsk.
Southwark Council has proudly announced Conrad Shawcross as the winner of the Dulwich Art Commission. The appointment follows an extensive public consultation process and deliberation by the Dulwich Park Commission Steering Group and the Contemporary Art Society who managed the artist commissioning process.
Conrad Shawcross has achieved international recognition for his work - most recently, he won acclaim for his 2013 Timepiece exhibition at the Roundhouse, London. His work was also displayed at this year's 55th Venice Biennale. His design, Three Perpetual Chords, has been selected from a shortlist also including proposals by artists Anya Galaccio, Ryan Gander and Eva Rothschild.
Following a public consultation in which over 400 local people gave their views about the proposals, the Dulwich Park Commission Steering Group came to a consensus to name Shawcross as the artist who best fulfils the commissioning principles originally set out.
Three Perpetual Chords proposes a series of cast iron sculptures, each created in relation to the mathematical patterns found in music. The artist describes these forms as "visual descriptions of musical chords." Roughly human height, the sculptures will be sequenced, leading visitors through an unexpected series of encounters in the park.
The current postmaster has tendered his resignation to Post Office Counters but both the postmaster and the Estate confirmed that Post Office Counters are looking to retain the post office facility in a nearby shop.
At the 50th anniversary party on 12th October the Chairman announced that the Society has now agreed heads of terms with the Council to take over the management of Rosebery Lodge and open a Dulwich Archive Centre. As well as running exhibitions and classes for residents and local schools on the area’s history, the Society will let out the rooms for other community groups. The Dulwich Vegetable Garden, part of Dulwich Going Greener, already use the kitchen and toilet block at the back that was refurbished two years ago also under an earlier Council CGS grant. The historic Dulwich post cart will also be stored there.
Over the past three years the Society has acquired additional CGS funding to carry out the refurbishment work necessary to make the main rooms in the building usable. A meeting held on October 10th instructed the Council’s architect to press ahead with going out to tender. While most of the funds will come from the Council, the Society has agreed to put £5000 from its own resources into the project.
Following numerous complaints about safety at the junction of Lordship Lane and Dulwich Common, Transport for London have confirmed that they are carrying out a feasibility study to assess whether it would be possible to introduce improvements for pedestrians and cyclists attempting to cross the road at this point. As the traffic lights are currently configured, vehicle traffic has the right of way at this junction at all times. Nor is there an alternative crossing nearby. The danger to pedestrians in this situation is very clear.
Residents have been lobbying local Councillors over several years to do something and they have now been joined by the Dulwich and Herne Hill Safer Routes to Schools group. The junction is a critical route to almost all the school for anyone coming from the south east.
A survey is a step forward, though further pressure will need to be applied as TfL’s previous view has been against prioritising the reconfiguring of the junction because the accident rate is not unusually high. Leaving aside the absurdity of requiring a sacrifice of life or limb to draw attention to the danger, it is likely that the accident rate is low because people must avoid crossing there or else take serious and unacceptable risks.
Following some recent TfL sponsored junction alterations which involved the removal of a pedestrian island in Burbage Road, local residents have become very concerned about pedestrian safety at the this roundabout. Following a number of near misses, the Dulwich Society secured a grant from Southwark’s CGS fund (Cleaner. Greener, Safer) to put back the former pedestrian island. The Council has painted some white lines on Burbage Road to show two possible locations for it and are now investigating the technical feasibility of each option. A formal local consultation is expected towards the end of the year with the results being reported back to the Dulwich Community Council for a decision.
Several of the shops in Half Moon Lane affected by the recent flood are reopening. A few were able to start trading again in September but Artimidorus, Tales on Moon Lane, Oxfam and the Oxfam Bookshop, Mimosa, and the Londis Supermarket will not reopen until December.
Cafe Provencal is likely to reopen in January but the Half Moon pub, whose panelled interior was particularly badly affected, is unlikely to be trading before February.
It appears that there may be a new tenant at Belair House. There is a large sign outside saying look at www.belairhouse.co.uk (bar, dining and social) – however when you go there it still says ‘website under construction’.
A public consultation will be held on 7th and 14th November. Both the Dulwich Society and the Herne Hill Society have lobbied to have the historic columns retained but to no effect – Rail Track are determined not to put them back.
Some initial enabling work on underpinning the abutments started in September and the actual renewal works will take place in January and February.
The sections of road by the bridges in Croxted Road and Rosendale Roads will be closed to all vehicle traffic from Saturday 11 to Sunday 26 January (with a pedestrian walkway except for the actual construction works on the weekend of 18/19 January).
Village Way bridge will be closed to vehicle traffic from Saturday 8 to Sunday 23 February – the actual construction work will take place on the weekend of 15/16 February.
On 3rd October London Mayor Boris Johnson officially unveiled a proposal to rebuild the Crystal Palace. The building will replicate the original in size and shape (though hopefully it will be fire-proof this time) and is likely to house an exhibition centre, and possibly a hotel and other commercial uses. The scheme also involves the restoration of the park to its original Victorian plan and will be funded by a Chinese property billionaire, Mr Ni Zhaoxing, Chairman of the ZhongRong Group based in Shanghai.
Half Moon Lane re-opened on Bank Holiday Monday, 26th August, but almost all the shops remain closed. Drying out of the flooded basements continues but some of the units, and the Half Moon, are not expected to re-open until October at the earliest. The latest news from the Oxfam shop is that it will be nearer Christmas before it will be trading.
Designed by Humphrey Ocean RA, the Artmobile will be launched by racing legend Sir Stirling Moss. The artist will sign his design at a breakfast event on Tuesday 10th September before the Artmobile embarks on its inaugural journey across London.
It will make possible a vastly increased range of creative activity for the least advantaged groups well beyond the confines of Dulwich. It will travel to community sites for older people, day centres, care homes, hospitals, schools and youth sites, working particularly with hard to reach audiences. The project will enable Dulwich Picture Gallery’s well regarded and award winning education department to increase community engagement and enhance lives through caring creativity.