London City Airport joins Crossrail campaign
Huw Lewis of Bexley Co. with - from left - WYG's Anne Clements, Dr Tarsha Finney of the Royal College of Art and Heather Feafield of Future Cities Forum at White City Place, London.
We are delighted to welcome back the Managing Director of Bexley Co, Huw Lewis, to our Future Cities Forum on 22nd November at The Woolwich Contemporary Print Fair to be held at the Royal Arsenal.
The forum will look at regeneration and creative place-making and Huw will update the audience on the strategy that Bexley Co is developing in its forward-thinking approach to attract investment to the borough.
In our July forum at White City Place, Huw spoke about this and commented: 'The council is taking a brave stance by only wanting a 7% return on its development investments - compared to a typical 15% target for private sector investors. This gives us an opportunity to take advantage of the low land values, through Bexley Co, and use an interventionist approach to create high quality housing that is affordable for residents.'
However at this forum with its accent on the creative and applied arts, Huw will also be able to describe the practical training that is being proposed at the Place and Making Institute which will be located in the borough.
Meanwhile, London City Airport has joined Bexley Council and Kent Council in the Crossrail to Ebbsfleet (C2E) Campaign. Both councils see the need for a Crossrail station at the airport as a prime example of the untapped potential on the route and finishing the rail programme in this way will deliver widespread housing, regeneration and growth.
They go on to say that a Crossrail station at London City Airport - connected to HS1 services at Ebbsfleet - will help business and leisure travellers from across South East London and Kent improve their access to international opportunities. As London City Airport embarks on its £480 million redevelopment, this is an important demonstration that the UK is open for business.
Finally, The Exchange and Bexley African Caribbean Community Association will be putting on a series of events in October and November that tell Bexley's rich and diverse story of migration using real accounts from local residents. This will mark the contribution that migrants have made to Bexley in the year that we celebrate the 70 years since the arrival of the Empire Windrush.