Save Stables Market in Camden ...

[SP]

It seems that, not content with the glass monstrosity that's already been created, money grabbing developers are planning to redevelop the rest of Stables Market in Camden. This really must be the final straw for Camden.

If like me you feel that this should be stopped, please take a little time to read the following article and sign the petition below ...

Article: http://www.thecnj.co.uk/camden/090706/news090706_01-1.htm

Petition: http://www.PetitionOnline.com/StablesM/

Cheers

Phil (SP)

[StraightSilver]

This is just typical, a bloody nightmare too!

It seems that money grabbing bastards would love to rip the heart out of yet another famous institution, and turn a London Landmark into another bland, soulless shopping mall!

It's bad enough that this happened to Kensington Market, but to have it happen to Stables too is really too much. Its already being slowly infiltrated by expensive furniture shops and shit faux-ethnic garbage as it is, but to completely re-develop it is out of order! Although I'm not surprised, shou;d have seen this one coming!

Sorry for the rant, its just that I was already in a foul mood this weekend because of the Intrepid Fox closing down tomorrow, and this has topped my Friday off nicely!!

I can't help but somehow feel we are all being persecuted, in a kind of paranoid ethnic-cleansing kind of a way. These bastards won't be happy until every one of our shops, pubs and clubs are wiped off the face of the earth!!!

Phew, think its time for another prozac.....

[ecclecticbb]

Aaaah, SP, you started a thread I wanted to start myself...

Camden Market is dying from a couple of years ago and it is the last remnant of the truly alternative London. Although it is much more mainstream since as I said 2/3 years ago than it has ever been. And this is why it is dying. Something I did mention already in another thread a few months ago, btw...

I guess the next Camden will maybe be Holloway or...

Where?
Any ideas?

I have already lived this sort of happening in the past. 20 years ago, to be precise. In my hometown. Not nice...

[CIW]

not only the stables, on the other side behind the Camden Canal market, our music rehearsal studio will be closed early next due to similar expansions :(

also got petitions running already, especially as it's one of the last music rehearsal studios in Camden Town, which is, considering it is Camden FFS, desastrous, just because of some money-greedy people...

[Guy13]

Aaaah, SP, you started a thread I wanted to start myself...

And me as well...I had the link ready to paste and everything.

I guess the next Camden will maybe be Holloway or...

Where?
Any ideas?

Dear god, not Holloway.

I remember when Carnaby Street used to be alternative and Kensington Indoor Market was THE place to go. *gets all nostalgic*

[swab]

And me as well...I had the link ready to paste and everything.



Dear god, not Holloway.

I remember when Carnaby Street used to be alternative and Kensington Indoor Market was THE place to go. *gets all nostalgic*

and portobello and the kings road, worked in all of them and will miss none

[Flux]

just because of some money-greedy people...

And there it is in a nutshell. Unfortunately it's as the Wu Tang Clan said:

"Cash Rules Everything Around Me"

:(

Shame really as the few places left that actually have some character are being assimilated by the tourism machine.


edit: oh, and I'll sign the petition when I'm at home :)

[Guy13]

and portobello and the kings road, worked in all of them and will miss none

Only did Carnaby Street in 1990...I lasted a month as I hated it so much.

[swab]

Only did Carnaby Street in 1990...I lasted a month as I hated it so much.

and I forgot the one I didn't work in......hyper hyper

[splatgirl]

petition already signed (and fingers already crossed ;) )

i found an interesting article about the links behind this obscene plan on the camden new journal out now. just to give some more precise facts and names, here's the gist of it.

the stables are owned by a company called "stables market (camden) limited", whose directors include mr. james lawrence.
this company is in turn owned by other companies and so on, resulting in an intricate, matrioska-like connection of companies ultimately leading to two parent companies registered in the tax haven of the british virgin islands.
obviously, this complicate link network is hard to follow and documents related to those companies are hard to trace. anyway, it turns out that, through them, the stables have been acquired by richard caring, one of the richest men in britain.

and here we go. the above mentioned mr. lawrence is involved with leading roles (mostly as a senior director) in many companies owned by... guess whom? richard caring of course. these include restaurants, clubs, golf courses and, above all, fashion/clothing companies such as "international clothing designs holding" and "the whistles".

if the stables redevelopment happens, it will bring up the rents by four or five times, thus making them unaffordable for most of the stall holders. obviously, this guy couldn't care less as he's more than keen on filling the vacant spaces with his own shops and activities. not to mention the awful number of starbucks, mac donald's and the likes that are already drooling for a space there.
furthermore, the current tenants are afraid of becoming openly involved in opposing this plan. since the project is led and promoted by their landlord, they're afraid that speaking out may cost them their tenancies.

it is clear that there are some very huge and powerful interests behind it, and unfortunately it is nothing new. i sincerely don't think that this mr. caring or any of his friends will give a shit about losing the vibrant unique character of the stables or anything like this.
in my opinion, the only reason why they could decide not to go down this road is because they realise it would not be profitable enough. people won't bother going to camden to find yet another replica of the same shopping centre that they have close to home.
without the market, camden won't attract people anymore and that's it.

beside signing the petition, what we can concretely do is try and avoid going to chains as much as possible, especially in the camden area. i know, they're so widespread and obsessively present that ruling them out completely is hardly feasible, but finding alternatives to bloody starbucks, mc donald's, burger kings, kfc, pret a manger, costa, caffe' nero (just to name a few) is still possible. and, anyway, they sell over-priced, low-quality stuff so it won't be such a loss.

i live very close to the barfly, a stone's throw from the stables. if someone needs a suggestion of nice independent places to check out here i'd be more than happy to help. we could think of just putting together the information we have and to spread the word to the people we know. it's not much, but it's still a good start...

[Flux]

beside signing the petition, what we can concretely do is try and avoid going to chains as much as possible, especially in the camden area. i know, they're so widespread and obsessively present that ruling them out completely is hardly feasible, but finding alternatives to bloody starbucks, mc donald's, burger kings, kfc, pret a manger, costa, caffe' nero (just to name a few) is still possible. and, anyway, they sell over-priced, low-quality stuff so it won't be such a loss.


Aye, SP & I have spent many a lunch break in the other, much better establishments in Camden...you just have to open your eyes and there are some great places to eat & drink there :D Same goes for buying cds, dvds etc...

Oh, and am I the only person to notice the irony that the person behind all of this is called Mr.Caring?!

[SP]

A friend of mine is helping to organise the main campaign. She has passed on this info to me ....

- next thursday at 1pm, there is going to be a small friendly
protest outside the main gates that London Tonight are going to cover (so
we'll be on the news!) - any chance you could come along and bring some
office members or let your mates know? We don't want hundreds of people, but
we also don't just want 10 people.

So, if you want your voice to be heard, or simply want to be on the local news, be there!!!

[Flux]

I'll be there in spirit mate...tis a bit too far for me to do in mah lunch hour! :(

[ecclecticbb]

Splatgirl, I am very familiar with all the crap of companies owning companies that own others and most of the times are closely related to dodgy businesses... And those "Off-shore" companies as they are called are all based in those tax haven located in countries such as Seychelles, Mauritius, all Caribbean islands, British and American Virgin Islands, Luxembourg, Monaco, Linchtenstein, etc...

There IS NO WAY of getting info about them at all. How I know this is because I worked as Credit Analyst for nearly 4 years and learned a lot about how money moves around the world and other rubbish that can depress and sicken the most concious amongst us. I contacted all sort of companies in any kind of field and background. Boring, yeah, but I learned far too much and that led me to my need of boycotting quite a few companies.

The only info that we could get was through the "Off-Shore Companies Registry" of the country after paying them a fee for an info that only included the year of establishment, a capital(usually not more than $5.000), their PO Box, if they were still active and the name of their agent. The activity is never ever given and can be anything. If you want to contact an agent and ask them for info such as the company's director or , again, the activity. You will get a "send a fax and if we have time, we will respond" with a very angry and suspicious tone in their voice. Obviously, you never get an answer to that fax.

This companies pay their taxes which are ridiculous in that country but cannot operate in that country. They have to be established somewhere else. Anywhere in the globe. Many mother companies of companies we know are owned by them... Makes you think. Doesn't it??

Honestly...

Camden Market has been agonising for a few years. And I do think it is going to die as we know it.

I signed. I cannot go on thursday to that demo, but if I could I would and not to get a picture on a local paper or whatever. I HATE popularity but everyone who likes what Camden represents and can go, should go.

Now, you little lovers of those myspace and livejournal, start typing and sending out bulletins with these links. Use these american tools for something a bit more interesting than just showing a few nice pics of yourselves and endless and unbelievable list of friends or sending stupid links that nobody wants to read or see...

Maybe in that list of friends that you have someone will come up with some idea nobody else thought of before and that could work. You never know...:)

I worked in Carnaby Street:rolleyes: and enjoyed it. Carnaby Street was alright. I also worked in Kensington Market. The atmosphere was quite pleasant but at some point at the end of its life, you could feel how fast it would end and there was a really sad feeling in the air. Both Carnaby street and Kensington Market had open their doors in the 1960's. I can say safely that Camden boom started really when Kensington closed and most of Kensington's shops flew to Camden Lock. This part of the Market was closed Monday to Friday but thanks to all those new shops coming there, they started opening everyday. And the rent went up gradually but surely and also very dramatically. I am sure we all have complained about prices in Camden. You do not want to know about the amount traders have to pay for their bills(rent is simply HUGE for a shop in the lock)...

Most of the little business owned that moved to Camden have not resisted the pressure of the rent. Others are just in debt in the hope to see the situation changing.

Facts also: The amount tourists spend in Camden has decreased dramatically and by tourist I do not mean only Hawaain shirt tourist types, I mean also alternative tourists.

Reasons: 1- London is expensive. Expensive for nearly everyone in Europe and even US except maybe Japanese... 2- People can get their stuff on Internet after coming to do some window-shopping to London, having tried what they like and searching for it on internet! Easy peasy!

So,... Where is the future Camden going to be settled?????

[snoww_wwhite]

next on the list is slimelight.


i have visions of toilets with soft music, smelling sweetly of roses, smiling young toilet masters and mistresses passing paper towels and mints.


.. not that i have come to like the loos as they are....


but in terms of music, the low quality ibiza dance shit seems to take over.. or on other days its the lesser quality fabric techno bilge that bores us to death...


slimelight might get the steel sheeting dancefloors and lazers

put your hands in the air....

http://www.animazoo.com/grafix/images/nightclub.jpg

[electronaught]

Don't say that. :cry:

It sends shudders through my spine.



next on the list is slimelight.



I do hope that The Stables is saved. Its allways a pleasure to go to Camden when ever I am in London. I have signed the petition. I would go to the demo but being 250 miles away its a little difficult.

[splatgirl]

Oh, and am I the only person to notice the irony that the person behind all of this is called Mr.Caring?!

yep, i take your point. probably the bloody bastard's full surname is Mr. Caring Only For His Own Ass ;)

the scary thing is that in the end you can't put the blame just on one of them if you're looking for something more than a scapegoat. today it's Mister Fucking Caring, tomorrow it'll be someone else.
it looks a bit like those 80s cartoons in which there was the wicked one that always wanted to rule the world, but this time the good and brave one that blows up his plans somehow is failing to show up. or he's very very late.


There IS NO WAY of getting info about them at all.
...
This companies pay their taxes which are ridiculous in that country but cannot operate in that country. They have to be established somewhere else. Anywhere in the globe. Many mother companies of companies we know are owned by them... Makes you think. Doesn't it??


bibi, it's very true. i shudder every time i hear about this kind of sneaky connections between big companies, run by fucking greedy bastards that play all these tricks to avoid taxes, laws and the like.

talking about companies that own companies, you know all that fuss that pret a manger makes about being natural organic and good for you? well, pret is run by macdonald's. which does not technically imply anything, they may well decide to put all the crap in the mcsandwiches and to keep pret clean as heaven, but still in all this there's something that feels slightly wrong to me...


Camden Market has been agonising for a few years. And I do think it is going to die as we know it.


i fell in love with camden the very first time i came to london, fifteen years ago.
i don't know if it was already in decline, or if earlier on it had been better. it was simply amazing with all those varied, colourful people that crowded this incredible market with its own unique atmosphere and character.
i was just another of those study holiday kids, and would not have moved to london for another 14 years. yet, walking through camden was astonishing and those sensations have always been a big part of what london left in me.
i came back lots of times since then, and now i actually live there. it's a lot more commercial now, and the idea of it slowly dying is something under everyone's eyes though putting up with it is not easy.


everyone who likes what Camden represents and can go, should go.


hopefully people will. unfortunately it's in a working day, and if you don't work close by it's pretty hard to make it in the lunchbreak. anyway, i'm sure that more demos will follow.


I worked in Carnaby Street:rolleyes: and enjoyed it. Carnaby Street was alright. I also worked in Kensington Market. The atmosphere was quite pleasant but at some point at the end of its life, you could feel how fast it would end and there was a really sad feeling in the air.


shit, it happened again. since i can remember, for some weird reason i've always missed the best phase of things. no matter what i like, there's always someone saying wistfully that before things were so much different (and so much better)...
mind you, i'm not being ironic at all. it's just that it's a constant thing that keeps happening to the people of our generation, and we cannot really do anything for it so it's a bit frustrating :(


I am sure we all have complained about prices in Camden. You do not want to know about the amount traders have to pay for their bills(rent is simply HUGE for a shop in the lock)...
Most of the little business owned that moved to Camden have not resisted the pressure of the rent. Others are just in debt in the hope to see the situation changing.

rents an bills are scary - making ends meet is getting harder and harder for lots of stallholders.


People can get their stuff on Internet after coming to do some window-shopping to London, having tried what they like and searching for it on internet! Easy peasy!

it's really that easy, especially if the vast majority of the places where they could spend money are actually exact copies of what they can find just outside their doorstep...


So,... Where is the future Camden going to be settled?????

good question, though i still wish that we could do something for the present one...

[Byakhiam]

Main gates? As in canal lock gates or some other gates? Being unemployed student, I could actually turn up in the demo. :)

[S2K]

This kind of thing will happen, until there are people who are richer than these useless cunts; people who are into music and music culture as well though.

Then they could just be out bid and told to fuck off.

These bastards probably haven't even heard of goth or any other kind of sub culture.

And if you've had the misfortune of dealing with Camden Council on any kind of administrative matter, no matter how mundane, you quickly get a feel of what kind of organisation it is. They are easy to buy off - corruption and uselessness are the bedrock of Camden Council.

As for falling in love with a place as someone here has said. I understand what you are saying, but your sentiments are lost on the decision makers.

Unless you have money you get fucked in the end. Sad but true.

There is always a way to get money though.

[fad]

I just copied and pasted the petition address to everyone in my address book suggesting they pass it on. If everyone who reads this does likewise surely we can do better than the paltry 3000 odd who have already signed!!!???

[S2K]

The same councillor palm greasing techniques that got this plan off the ground can also be used to stop it.

[splatgirl]

just an update about the stables plans: as expected, the redevelopment has been approved and is due to start soon.
a fairly large part of the market will be torn down to make room for the fancy glass shit they've come up with, and you can easily guess what kind of shops are likely to fill up the shiny glossy glassy new shopping arcade.

shame on the bastards, may their glass shit shatter down on them.

[toxygenie]

more and more glass for camden :(
...like that old corner pub that got turned into a fish bowl. Horrible piece of work it is.

[Setesh]

Bye bye culture, hello ££££££'s.

[ecclecticbb]

I am telling you, the next step is Holloway...

Been to the Big Red or the Old King's Head...?

Went last week-end and got happily surprised. There is still hope for London...;)

[splatgirl]

hey, there's more. here's what i found in an article on the camden new journal a few weeks ago.

the scar studios in camden are in dire straits due to a huge rent increase: nothing less than 50%, that adds up to 33 ground a year.

these studios are located in hawley road and provide cheap rehearsal space and equipment to unsigned bands. not only: they are also used for music and culture classes by local community groups.
not surprisingly, they will have to charge more for hiring space at the studios and many bands won't be able to afford it anymore.
due to this, the studios might end up closing down, or ceasing to exist as they are. another bit of camden wiped out.

what's interesting, though, is who is behind it all.

the studios are currently owned by a company called ground gilbey, that took them over from the previous owner in april and immediately declared that the rent was going to go up.
but, hang on - the spokesman representing ground gilbey is the same that represents stables market.
just to make things clear, he added that the people who run stables market are also the operators for ground gilbey.

surprising? sadly not too much...

[CIW]

I'd say, to the wall and off let the MG42 do it's work!

yeah, our room at scar's now 12 pounds per hour, compared to 9 before :|

[Lenorina]

I am telling you, the next step is Holloway...

Been to the Big Red or the Old King's Head...?

Went last week-end and got happily surprised. There is still hope for London...;)

Vaaaya...

I´m glad to see I´m not the only one who thinks Holloway is an interesting area ;)