Wansteadium

The Wanstead municipal Christmas Tree has been up for more than two weeks now, and Wansteadium has to report it feels a bit let down that there is nothing much to report about it. This is an object which has been the source of so many rewarding blog posts down the years, from crowdsourcing to badger-lights, to only half of it being lit to… oh well just lots of things. But this year nothing. Nothing to report. No complaints, no issues, no disgruntlement. Wanstead, you’ve changed.

Readers are invited to join a crowdsourcing effort to work out questions to put to Redbridge council about their planned change to parking in Wanstead which will be happening in the New Year.

These are questions already raised by readers in comments or emails. You’re welcome to add more using the comments field below. Two drop-in sessions are to be held next week (details at the bottom of the post) but no formal meetings are planned.

• New residents’ parking zones are being introduced. Won’t all or some of the cars displaced by this scheme just park elsewhere in Wanstead? How will that be stopped?
• There is an issue about process here. There was a borough-wide consultation on parking but that did not show people in Wanstead wanted pay and display parking on the High Street. How then can this be justified?
• How can a scheme which is a propsal suddenly become a trial and be implemented all within the same announcement?
• Why has there been no meaningful consultation about this dramatic scheme? Previous schemes have been widely consulted through the old area committees, which were abolished. So what has the council done to meaningfully consult with Wanstead residents?
• Why is the council holding drop-in consultation sessions rather than proper formal public meetings which would give residents the chance to question the council leaders and officers?
• Will the council undertake to hold a proper public meeting in Wanstead concerning the proposals at which councillors and officers can be questioned by council tax payers?
• How will the council be monitoring the impact on shops on Wanstead High Street? Will it undertake now to be open and transparent about any findings it might make?
• The RAC Foundation report on Friday says that councils in England made a surplus of £756m in 2015/6 from parking charges and fines. How much has Redbridge made from parking charges and fines from drivers in Wanstead, where does the money go, and will the council undertake to be open and transparent about the increased sums it will raise through this scheme?
• What are the additional costs of signage and meters and enforcement, and will the council undertake not to include this expenditure in its decision about the success of the trial?
• Has the council considered a scheme of parking cards to be bought from local shops, as is used in Wood Street in Walthamstow? That would be cheaper to implement (not needing machines for what might be an unsuccessful trial) and would guarantee people going in to shops even if only to buy a card.

The drop-in consultation sessions are to be held at Wanstead Library next Wednesday, 14 December, between 2pm and 7pm and on Saturday 17 Dec between 10am and 2pm. 

Christmas spirit flowing freely on the High Street, evidently.

At least three places on the High Street with vacancies. The Currant, The Ginger Pig, and Percy Ingle all have signs up for openings.
* Any employer who is looking for staff is welcome to send us a note for inclusion here.

UPDATE:

Also this:

Some amazing shots of the famous white-cheeked turaco of Aldersbrook. We reported earlier this year on the bird which has apparently happily lived wild in the area for four or five years.

The turaco is native to Sudan, South Sudan, Ethiopia and Eritrea, and this one is thought to have been an escaped or released pet.

Wansteadium reader Maggie Barrett spotted the bird in her garden in Windsor Road.  She writes:

“He came very close to me and didn’t appear worried about me taking photos. I know he has been around for a few years but he hasn’t been seen for a while. When he flies, the underside of his wings are an incredibly bright red. Really beautiful. My neighbours see him regularly as he seems to enjoy the company of their chickens. They have named him Bob.”

Read this and weep/rejoice (delete as applicable).