Abandoned car Pembroke Street

H680_oee_1 Haven’t had one of these for ages – will report to  council either theft or an insurance job. Unusual that the plates have not been removed.

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Pentonville Prison criticised again

Pentonville_prison_iln_1842_1Pentonville Prison is a near neighbour, looming up on the Caledonian Road North of the Ferodo Bridge in genteel Barnsbury.  It employs a lot of local people.  When Pentonville was built in 1842 it was a radically new building one of the world’s first prisons built to Jeremy Bentham’s scientific panopticon design with radial wings and a ‘silent system’ (fascinating article here).  The silent system was a horrific form of sensory deprivation – all noise and contact between prisoners was banned.   At the huge cost of £85,000 In 1842 Pentonville was considered a luxury prison – indeed inmates must have had beter physical conditions than the slums from which they came.  There are some great contemporary descriptions here.  As the picutre above shows at that time the Caledonian Road was undeveloped and the area was market gardens and heavily polluted by the tile-kilns that littered the area. 

The prison had a huge problem with corruption amongst staff (see here)
and is now in the news for some grim conditions. Prison reformers are calling for Pentonville to be shut.  But if it is then there is nowhere local for prisoners from North London to go so that their families can visit them.  Mind you is it was shut it would be some remarkable real estate – a large Barnsbury site with a listed building.  The developers will be salivating – Penthouse at Pentonville anyone? A snip at £1million.

Posted in Current Affairs | 1 Comment

Contact Islington confusion

Islington_logo Contact Islington has transformed dealing with Islington Council – replacing the list of 20-30 phone numbers i used to have to deal with street problems with just one number – the staff are normally very helpful and sort things out. 

But slightly too often things go wrong and it is really hard to understand why.  I emailed Contact Islington on the 16th with a photo and precise location of the fridge freezer dumped on Rufford Street.  Heard nothing more.  I rang on the 21st to report some tipping and mentioned the fridge freezer – i was told would be cleared in the same run.  The tipping was cleared but the fridge freezer remained.

Then last night (26th Sept) an email turned up at 04:21 in the morning acknowledging my email of the 16th and giving me a service request number of 1133044.  Really weird.  I often have this problem with emails to Contact Islington – they lurk for ages doing nothing, then a confirmation arrives in the middle of the night.  If they can’t handle emails or are overwhlemed they should just say so then we can ring them.

Anyway – the fridge is still there – perhaps it is an art installation – there is some bloke in Lewisham who does this but it isn’t time for the Turner Prize.  So i mailed Chris Demetriou in ICSL – he tends to get things fixed.

Will see if i can get a response from the management at Contact Islington and post it here.

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From Brent Spar to Kings Cross

Book90 I am startled to find that Chris Rose, doyenne of campaigners worldwide has featured this site on his campaign strategy website and his recent newsletter (this link to word document).  Chris was behind the PR for the Brent Spar campaign that put Greenpeace on the front of newspapers worldwide.  He has built a practice on the science and art of winning campaigns and has written a good book about it (which i have if anyone wants to borrow it locally) and runs a website on campaigning. Personally, I don’t think Chris’ stuff exploits new media sufficiently but have a look and judge it for yourselves.  It is always nice to be recognised.

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Forlorn fridge freezer

Fridgefreezer I am starting to feel sorry for the fridge freezer abandoned at the end of Rufford Street and now covered in graffiti.  I reported it by email over a week ago.  Followed up with a phone call (at the same time as reporting some other tipping) and was assured that it would be picked up.  But still no one loves it. WIll have another go but this is silly.

Posted in Street Tipping, Mess, Trash | 4 Comments

Royal Television Society

Rts I am pleased and slightly surprised to say that this website has featured in a speech by Tessa Jowell MP (para 38) Secretary of State for Culture to the Royal Television Society on new media.  So welcome if you have come here because of that – this site simply records all sorts of environmental problems in this densely populated part of North London and residents’ attempts to sort them out – anything from broken street lights, to fly tipping to tackling the noisy CEMEX an enormous multinational that causes local pollution.

Tessa Jowell said that this ‘reconnect citizens with the democratic process’  – in part by simply keeping the Council on its toes but also by giving these environment issues a voice, otherwise no one would notice and sorting out a range of things amongst ourselves.

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Yasar food market, 319 Caledonian Road

Dsc01011 There is some great shopping on the Caledonian Road if you look hard enough for it.  Up near the Ferodo bridge, close to the Offord Road junction, at number 319 (map) Yasar is an excellent grocery specialising in organic and unusual continental and turkish foods.  They have a great selection of vegetables, turkish delight, breads, baklava, dairy products, teas and a small deli counter.  Most Novembers they have in lovely  fresh shahani dates from Iran and occasionally goats butter makes an appearance.  Important local source of Green and Blacks chocolate including the ginger one.  No alcohol licence though there is a reasonable off licence next door, now fresh meat.  Prices not cheap but it’s either Yasar or Iceland.  In one healthy walk you can take in Yasar and the Italian 1960s time warp that is Continental Food Stores opposite Tesco down near Kings Cross.

Posted in Food and Drink | 2 Comments

Rufford street more tipping

Dsc01009Another tip – have reported to Council.  While i was on the phone to Contact Islington i checked that they were coming to collect the fridge freezer on the street.  For some reason it had dropped off their records – they should pick it up now.

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