Revised footbridge designs for Greenwich Reach/Deptford Creek

New designs for the proposed swing bridge over the mouth of Deptford Creek have been submitted to Greenwich planners, and the design documents are on the planning website. Don't be fooled by the visualisations, however, they are the same as the ones that were posted with the (first revision)  application earlier this year. 

The pictures I've posted here are taken from the new detailed design planning statement. Galliard Homes - the developer of the New Capital Quay which has to provide the swing bridge as part of its section 106 commitment (although as I explained in my last post, got agreement for some extra floors on top of its existing buildings to 'pay' for the bridge) has now commissioned some proper bridge designers - Flint & Neill - to examine the proposal and ensure it is workable. Despite the fact that it's a small structure, a certain level of experience is required to properly design a cable-stayed swing span bridge. 

The revised design is a lot less flashy but according to those in the know, looks like it might actually work from a structural point of view. The mast height has been lowered, the arrangement of the counterweight has been changed and various details of the design have been adjusted to reduce the amount of future maintenance required. Reading the planning details, it sounds like the initial proposal was, shall we say, unworkable?

One glaring omission from the documents so far is any firm commitment on operation - an issue which is particularly thorny for the Creek's boat dwellers and those who use it for goods deliveries such as Priors.

Creekside Cafe

Creekside Café is a friendly, independent café in the creative heart of Deptford. Offering breakfast, lunch, snacks, lovely coffee and homemade cakes.

Relax and enjoy the exhibition by local artists. Go on a sunny day and sit outside amongst the jasmine and herbs.

The believe in fresh and tasty, that’s why they do things like make their own houmous and roast their own chicken. They have a choice of homemade soup, salads and quiches change daily, along with freshly made paninis and sandwiches.

They also believe in local and ethical – so all theri meat is from WH Wellbeloved in Deptford, their eggs are free-range and come from a farm in Kent, their tea, sugar and hot chocolate are all Fairtrade and they source many ingredients from the local traders in Deptford.

Their coffee (which gets a whole page) is always made with organic milk.

Venue: 

Unit A008/009, Faircharm, 8-12 Creekside, London, SE8 3DX

Deptford Project Cafe

Since its arrival in 2008, a disused train carriage has become part of the fabric of Deptford High Street. Thanks to a collaborative art project, both the disused railway yard and the carriage itself were transformed, the latter housing a surprisingly cosy café and the yard hosting open-air film screenings and other events. The colourful, partly covered decking area has a surprise waiting in the shed at one end – a WC masquerading as a shrine to Elvis. The café is popular with families for early brunches and lunches, so you may find that the menu becomes more limited after about 1pm on weekends.

On our visit, the soup and specials had run out, but helpful staff were ready to suggest additions that could be made to the available dishes. Baked potatoes and sandwiches with an array of toppings and fillings form the backbone of the menu, along with a choice of salads. No need to stop for a full meal, however – excellent coffee, fresh juices and generous wedges of own-made cakes make it a good pit-stop.

Venue:

121-123 Deptford High Street
London
SE8 4NS

Deptford Reach

Deptford Reach helps people rebuild lives that have been damaged by homelessness, mental illness, drug or alcohol abuse and social exclusion.

From their centre in London SE8, they offer a wide range of support, advice, training and practical help. Their watchwords are respect and individual support.

Deptford in south east London is one of the most deprived districts anywhere in the UK with very high levels of social exclusion. That's what makes their. work so vital.

Deptford Reach is a drop-in centre for adults over 16 years of age who are vulnerable through homelessness, mental ill-health, loneliness, social exclusion and severe poverty.

They support more than 70 people each weekday through a programme of courses, workshops, activities and advice sessions. Last year over 675 new service users came through their doors.

Origins

Deptford Reach, until recently called The Deptford Churches Centre, came into being in 1979.

Their founders were largely committed Christians from different denominations who united to reach out and help the homeless and marginalised of Deptford and South London. This has continued to be their aim for the past 30 years.

They take a non-judgmental stance, offering warmth and opportunity to all. The focus of all their work is enabling clients to progress and move on in ways that are right for them.

Prince of Wales 

After a recent visit to the centre by TRH The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall, their private secretary wrote:

Their website:  http://www.deptfordreach.org.uk/index.html

The White Swan - Deptford

An imposing corner property situated on Deptford High Street on the corner with

Edward Street. This was built as a pub and also a hotel in the early 1800s. It is stock

brick with classical detailing and retains the original pub frontage. There is a grand

separate entrance to the hotel on the Edward Street elevation and the pilasters,

fascia and decorative entrances of the pub frontage are all still intact. 

The pediment detail to the first floor windows has been removed. The most impressive element of this building, which can be seen along the street, is the deep parapet which

incorporates the signage ‘Swan’, ‘Hotel’ and ‘The White Swan’ and classical arched detailing. At the corner rising above the parapet is a swan figurine sitting within a stuccoed recessed background with a finial above.

Depftord Film Club

Launched in September 2009, Deptford Film Club brings the most interesting, challenging, heart-breaking cinema into where you want to be: a nice friendly room above the pub. No pretensions, no passwords. Just great movies at an affordable price, and in good company.

Venue: 

Amersham Arms

388 New Cross Road

London SE14 6TY

020 8469 1499

Website: http://www.deptfordfilmclub.org

Deptford Park

An oasis of greenery in a heavily urbanised area of the borough. Bordered by mature plane trees, it makes a pleasant walk around the wide, perimeter pathway. 

The site of Deptford Park, originally a market garden, was sold by the Evelyn family to the London County Council, in 1884, and the park was officially opened to the public on 7 June 1897.

In recent years the park has undergone two phases of improvement works. Phase one works included the installation of new boundary railings, brick pillars and gates. Phase two comprised of the new children's playground, formal paved area and seating.

The Old Brewery - Deptford

An impromptu social gathering last night saw myself, the Geezer and a friend trying out the (confusingly new) Old Brewery which opened recently in Greenwich.

I liked the look of the menu, and so we decided to eat in the restaurant (they also do bar food) after first having a beer in the garden. The bar and garden have got to be the best kept secret in Greenwich, certainly on a Tuesday night and perhaps mainly because word hasn't spread far yet.
There are lots of tables in the walled and gravelled garden at the end of the bar - it's nicely protected from the roar of the one-way system by a bit of distance and a large wall, and it was buzzing but far from crowded when we got there in the early evening.

I was happy to see that as well as a bar's length of taps with Meantime beers on sale, they also had three hand pumps with guest ales, one of which was the reliably tasty Harvey's Sussex Ale, as well as a vast range of bottled beers. I can appreciate the quality of the beers that Meantime Brewery makes, but I've not yet found one that I really like - I know lager drinkers who rate them highly but I don't find any of their ales particularly moreish so I was glad to have the choice of the guest beers.

Before long we went to take our table in the restaurant and my friend cast his critical eye over the interior decor. The vats that line one wall and the 'wave' of empty bottles that hangs over one side of the room were given the seal of approval, along with the colour scheme and furniture. But we were rather spooked by the other end of the room which looked more like a church hall - curtains hanging round the wall and a strange huddle of furniture. Luckily I was seated facing the vats.It was pretty lively even for a Tuesday night, a good level of noise and enough customers to create a good atmosphere.

So what about the food? The menu offered a good mix of British staples and some tasty-sounding puddings. We decided to forgo the starters and go straight into mains. The 'fillets of Dorset plaice with potato & spring onion hash, razor clam, caper & parsley butter' were tasty but I was rather disappointed by the miniscule amount of razor clam. At first I thought they'd forgotten to put it on, then noticed that the half shell of the razor clam that was perched cheekily on the side of the plate was scattered with some tiny slivers of sliced clam. Tasty but all too fleeting. The fish was rather dry, and the potato cake (it was more potato cake than rosti) was ok but nothing special. Hardly any parsley butter had made it to the plate.

The steaks (one medium, one medium rare) were declared very tasty, but again the chips disappointed, looking as if they had come from the chipper next Peter de Wit's cafe (although the Geezer grudgingly admitted that they tasted 'a bit better' than that).

Sides of green beans and roasted squash were poles apart. The beans were very tasty, the squash was anything but. For a start I don't believe it was roasted at all - steamed perhaps, but certainly not roasted. The 'sage butter' again was notable by its absence, the only sign of it being a couple of green specks sticking to the steamed squash. Perhaps they were having a butter crisis in the kitchen?

Luckily the desserts cheered us up and sent us home a bit happier. I can't remember how mine was described and it's not on the menu on the website, but it was basically a piece of moist, gingery caramelly cake with a caramel sauce and some pouring cream. A whole jug of pouring cream, to be precise. I do prefer to pour my own cream on to puddings - and to have a liberal supply so that I can pour my own cream on repeatedly!

But the Geezer's hot chocolate fondant with Jersey ice cream caused a serious case of plate envy among myself and my friend. I'm not crazy about chocolate - I don't mind it but would rather have a hunk of cheese - but this just looked seriously good. And we didn't get offered a taste either, the Geezer managed to hog it all for himself, which says a lot about the quality!

Deptford Creekside Discovery Centre

Creekside Discovery Centre on Deptford Creek, offers an exciting range of indoor and outdoor activities for all ages. Walk through a wild river, fish for animals in their natural environment and experience the huge diversity of urban wildlife.

As a tidal tributary of the Thames, Deptford Creek is home to hundreds of fresh and saltwater plants and animals. The centre is a purpose built environmental education centre, equipped with waders, engaging and knowledgeable staff and everything you need for some good, clean, muddy fun!

Website for Creekside: http://www.creeksidecentre.org.uk/

Walking in Deptford

Last Saturday was the hottest day of the year, so what better way to spend it than embarking on a three hour, fifteen minute walking tour of Deptford's streets and backwaters? Seriously, I couldn't think of a better way to spend it. 

At Tanners Hill (home to some of the oldest residential dwellings in London, and also, one of the city's finest butchers), we rendezvous with our guide, Sean Patterson. Sean has earned a reputation as one of London's most savvy guides; he traces the footsteps of Victorian philanthropist Charles Booth, who himself documented the poverty levels of London in painstaking detail with colour-coded maps.

As Sean leads us through the jostling fish, meat, veg and hardware stalls of Deptford High Street, he points out how the strip survived relatively unscathed throughout the Second World War, and how Booth would have seen many of the extant buildings erected while he was conducting his famous survey.

Sean's walking tours (he does one in Clerkenwell and is about to debut a Whitechapel walk) are immersive affairs. We pause regularly under arches, by bridges, in graveyards, where he reads out extracts from Booth's magnum opus (there are also entertaining quotes from Booth's many aids and accompanying policemen). 

Although Booth sets the blueprint for the walk, it is not just Victorian Deptford we are enlightened on. Sean stops us by an reproduction painting of the old maritime Deptford to explain how Deptford was always a more vital dock than Greenwich. Every illustrious seafarer from Drake, to cook, to Nelson passed through here at one time or another. 

Remnants of World War II are everywhere in Deptford if you squint hard enough. We're shown a sign slapped onto the side of a building, still pointing in the direction of an air raid shelter. Later on, we realize the fence we're leaning against is fashioned from old stretchers.
It is not just Deptford's distant past that Sean touches on though; this is an immaculately well-rounded walk highlighting what has changed little in centuries, and what is now (or will soon be) beyond all recognition. 

Towards the tail end of our cultural schlep, we're whisked inside the paradisaical St. Nicholas churchyard, where the playwright and spy Christopher Marlowe is buried. The skull and crossbones flanking the graveyard's entrance, reckons Sean, may be what inspired the notorious Jolly Roger. Yet another nugget to stuff into our ballooning brains. 

By this time the sun is beating down furiously, and we retire to the beer garden of the Dog & Bell (Sean's preferred Deptford boozer) for a well-earned refresher, before finishing up in the cool of another graveyard (this one St Paul's) where Sean imparts a final touching story.
Then we all go our separate ways to scribble down extensive notes and shove ice cubes down our tops.