Bermondsey and Rotherhithe residents have called for three publicly-owned sites in the area to be brought back into use, with the buildings standing empty for years.
The Boat House and the former café building in Southwark Park, and Surrey Docks adventure playground in Rotherhithe are among more than twenty sites in Southwark identified by London Green Party politician Sian Berry as “dead spaces” following a Freedom of Information (FOI) request.
The Boat House by the lake in Southwark Park has been out of use since 2017, according to the FOI. The building used to be used for boat storage before this service ended. For a long time it was covered in bird excrement and the roof was vandalised, before the council cleaned it up and fixed the roof. But it still remains unused.
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“In effect it has become a place for birds to gather,” said Patrick Kingwell of the Southwark Park Association 1869, a community group that aims to protect and promote the park.
“We did suggest the fencing could be realigned closer to the lake edge and the boat house itself converted into an outdoor shelter from which people could sit and view the lake and The Oval [the park’s cricket pitch, also in need of a makeover].
The former café building, which closed in January 2020, was replaced by the new cafe but has sat empty for two and a half years. Mr Kingwell said that his group had suggested that the building could be used as a base for school and community groups when exploring the park.
But it is worth pointing out that the park does now boast a large cafe with stunning views of the lake and an new gallery space nearby.
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According to the FOI, the future of the building is under review. Mr Kingwell said that the council was considering knocking it down for safety reasons.
Southwark held a consultation in 2020 on the future of Southwark Park, where the group made their suggestions for the buildings to be brought into “positive community use”. Mr Kingwell said they have not heard back from the council on their suggestions.
Meanwhile the Surrey Docks adventure playground, which closed in August 2021, has no reopening date set yet, ten months on. The council say on their website that the Trident Street facility “will remain closed for the time being, as this site requires significant investment to improve the play offer which we are working on.”
The playground is one of five adventure playgrounds in Southwark, two of which are closed. The other site not operating is Frederick’s adventure playground in Walworth, which is shuttered until 2023 after asbestos was discovered.
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Asked what the plans were for the Surrey Docks playground and the two Southwark Park buildings, Southwark Council did not comment.
The old cafe building should be demolished and make the space a dog area where they can safely be off lead without the risk of running amok in main park