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  WARDS CORNER PLAN
B U L L E T I N  # 2

A brief update for friends and supporters of our peoples plan to save the Latin Village from demolition and create a new cultural hub for everyone!

FOR-WARDS CORNER!

We are excited to have prepared our first complete package of drawings for our new peoples planning application! Ahead of submission, we are now refining our ideas with traders and market users to ensure the best possible scheme can be realised for everyone in Tottenham.

As work progresses, we are looking forwards to taking our ideas back out into the wider community, building on the extensive consultation process which has shaped each iteration of the peoples plan. We are also reaching out to others engaged in similar projects, so that we can learn and share best practice. 
 
Alongside our consultants, we have developed a viable business model which shows we can refurbish the building and place it under democratic control while maintaining the same or lower rents for all new and existing community tenants! 

We are now working with our friends in the New Economics Foundation to demonstrate the wider benefits of our scheme for the local economy, including how our plan can act as a catalyst for wider community wealth-building projects within Haringey. 


MORE UPDATES COMING SOON!

THERE'S A "F***ING WAR" ON OUR COMMUNITY... 
 
The skilled researchers at Corporate Watch have kindly prepared two excellent reports on the companies - Quarterbridge and Grainger - who seek to profit from bullying and displacing our community:

MAM-QUARTERBRIDGE:

The firm tasked with 'managing' the market has extracted millions in rents, while neglecting maintenance, subjecting us to racist bullying and waging "a fucking war" against those who speak out. As Corporate Watch found:

"Quarterbridge was not maintaining the market properly. Toilets were out of order, the roof was leaking, floors were dirty and pests were starting to appear. All of this, of course, makes the current market look as though it is in ever more urgent need of redevelopment – which just happens to benefit other parts of the Owen-Linch business network."

GRAINGER PLC


Britain's largest 'build-to-rent' developer, Grainger are the firm "cashing in on the housing crisis" - and potentially the demolition of our market - making profits of £87 million in 2018 alone. CEO Helen Gordon - a key player in a major banking scandal - describes Grainger's prospects as bright because: 

“We have in the UK a housing shortage. We know that more people will be renting for longer periods of their lives, and unlike shops and offices we will have a constant demand for occupation. Plus rents usually rise with inflation and wages, so for an investor, it’s quite a good hedge against inflation.”

If you have a strong stomach, you can read the reports here and here...


BUT LATIN VILLAGE FIGHTS BACK!

Grainger and Quarterbridge may think its a done deal, but we are done dealing with them! We are more determined than ever to prove that another city is possible. By implementing our community plan, we hope to provide a model for how urban development can benefit people, not profiteers.

WE NEED YOUR HELP!

We have written an open letter to the leader of Haringey Council, Joe Ejiofor, and need all the signatures we can get - please sign and share with friends! (though please keep off social media)

We have written model motions for Labour Party CLP's and Trade Union branches - if you are a member, please submit a copy! The more motions passed, the more pressure will be put on Haringey Council to get rid of Grainger and their bullying friends. 


SEE YOU IN COURT!
 
We are thrilled to have launched our High Court challenge to the Compulsory Purchase Order with our excellent legal team from Hodge, Jones & Allen and Garden Court Chambers!

However, we need to raise over £20,000 in court and legal fees - thanks to the amazing efforts of our supporters, we have already raised nearly £9,000!

But there is still some way to go, so if you can, please consider donating to our 'Crowdjustice' campaign - all funds go directly to our legal team! 
MEDIA ROUND-UP!

As our campaign continues to grow, we hope to demonstrate to communities across the country that if you fight, you can win - so we're excited our struggle has featured on ITV News, in The Evening Standard, The Metro, Red Pepper and more:

Ash Sarkar at Novara Media produced this excellent video about our market "on the frontline of the fightback against gentrification – and the first Momentum council" - which we highly recommend watching
In The Times, Hazel Sheffield reports on the histories of market traders, the community plan and our fight for dignity and self-management, highlighting that:

"The legal case is backed by United Nations experts, who have been communicating with the government on the issue. In March the UN reiterated its view, first stated in 2017, that plans to demolish the market were incompatible with the state’s obligations to protect minorities and were therefore a threat to the traders’ human rights.
"
In The New Socialist, Angus Satow examines our struggle in the wider political context of the shifting Labour Party, arguing Latin Village has become a test case for the resolve of Momentum-backed candidates to fight for change once in office:

"This is a political choice. The Council could cancel the compulsory purchase order and turn the relentless displacement of London’s working class into a massive and pressing public issue. There is even an alternative community plan, radical and practical, for the Village."

THE STRUGGLE CONTINUES!

While the CPO decision is for demolition, their pieces of paper mean nothing against the strength of our community: we will fight them every step of the way!

If you would like to support the campaign, why not drop us a line on solidarity@wardscornerplan.org and let us know how you'd like to help?

Otherwise, watch out for updates, events and most importantly,
d e m o n s t r a t i o n s !!

See you soon and #savelatinvillage!
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The Wards Corner Plan by Save Latin Village / Unit 38 Studio is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Our mailing address is:
Unit 38
Seven Sisters Indoor Market, 231-241 High Road
London, N15 5BT

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