Author: Wansteadium

The long-awaited refurbished playground on Christ Church Green is official open for business. Officials from Redbridge Vision have given the site the go-ahead and, following a slightly false start on Monday when some families thought it was already open, all will now be welcome.

So this is the completion of a mighty act of community self-help, something which started right here on these pages when, in October 2014, Louise Cutler kicked off fundraising with a letter to other readers.

Since then, a huge effort by the Wanstead Playground Association – recognised for their efforts by a Redbridge Mayor’s award for community champions – and the rest of the community, supported by various grant-giving bodies, has raised the funds necessary for the renovation.

And so as the children get playing, Wansteadium encourages anyone reading to doff their cap to Nicola, Sarah, Danielle, Louise and all those involved in this great thing. And children, fill your boots.

 

 

An elderly man died after a collision at the zebra crossing in Wanstead High Street on Tuesday morning.

The incident happened just before 9am during heavy rain and strong winds. Some hours later investigators were still at the scene and the High Street remained closed for most of the day. A small car was removed from the crossing.

The Wanstead Guardian reported that the man, in his 90s, died just after 1pm from head injuries. It said no arrests had been made.

We’re just daysthree weeks away from the start of the next round of Blake Hell Road, the 20-week long roadworks which will – it feels fair to say – bring chaos to Aldersbrook and beyond.

The replacement of the “gas governor” – the gas main beneath the road – is the cause of the disruption, but it’s the management of traffic which causes as much frustration as cars, buses and other traffic attempts to enter or leave the junction with Cambridge Park.

National Grid, which is replacing the main, has agreed working hours with Redbridge Council, which are Monday – Friday 7.30am to 6pm, and on Saturday 8am-4pm. There will be no major work on Sundays or overnight.

The work will include

• Three-way temporary traffic lights being introduced at the junction of Blake Hall Road, Bush Road and Overton Drive for at least eight weeks.
• Overton Drive itself being closed at the junction of Blake Hall Road from the beginning of August for two months, and the width restrictions on the road will be removed to make sure people can reach their houses.
• Tennyson Ave being closed for three weeks in October.
• Felstead Road being closed for three weeks in November.

National Grid is running a drop-in session at Wanstead Library on Tuesday 7 June from 9am to 9pm for people to find out more about the work and to ask questions. Work itself is due to start on 20 June. 

And in the meantime, Wansteadium is delighted to introduce a new Twitter account, @blakehellroad, for a “polite and acccurate” record of the work and the disruption caused. It will be featured on the front page of Wansteadium from today.

So, every other friend I have in Aldersbrook is a builder. How difficult can it be to erect a monorail across Wanstead Park? @blakehellroad

— Martin (@MartinTalbot) May 25, 2016

The news that night Tubes are to make their belated start in August will come as bittersweet for many of those living next to the above-ground Central Line.

Trains running every 20 minutes throughout Friday and Saturday night will mean people living next to the overground Epping branch – which includes Hollybush Hill, New Wanstead, Sylvan Road, Eagle Lane, Osprey Close, Alexandra Road, Foxdene Close and other roads  – having to get used to the new overnight noise.

Those living above the Hainault branch of the line – houses near to the A12 – may also get have new noise patterns to get used to. Earlier this year many people living in this area reported hearing strange noises which Transport for London put down to new portions of track bedding in.

Tfl last year issued a statement about trying to minimise the noise from the night tube, which is pasted below. Trains are due to start on 19 August and details about the new service are here.

 

Wanstead’s most iconic building – the home of Stitch and the former Andrew’s Builders’ Merchants – is looking for a new tenant.

The boxy little beauty on Woodbine Place was for decades the home of the builders’ merchants, pictured here in Geoff Wilkinson’s wonderful catalogue of Wanstead Daily Photos. It was thoroughly refurbished by Jenni Rosenberg and family who have been operating Stitch from there for the past four years but are now considering moving to larger premises. The building is now listed with agents at an annual rent of  £27,500.

So the questions will start about who might move in to the spot. Wansteadium has its own favourite theory about who would be best suited, which for the time being we will keep close to chest. But feel free to discuss the issue in comments below.

Longtime readers will remember our anguish at the undignified end the old Andrews sign had (ie a skip), but there’s always the make-your-own memento which is still good for whiling away a few minutes.

 

 

Bravo to Wanstead singer Hannah White whose single Sunny Day is doing well in various charts – this week topping the Sweet Rhythms chart on Solar Radio.  You can hear the song below (or if you’re using an iPhone, tap here).

This is the first single Hannah has released in her own right, though in the past she has done backing vocals for Kenny Thomas, Ringo Starr, Ronnie Wood and Alexander O’Neal.

Hannah also passes as Beatrice, one half of the creative pair Harry and Beatrice whose work we featured (and was featured on the wall of Wanstead Tube) in March.