The block run by the Tower Tenants’ Management Organisation (TMO) at 355 Queensbridge Road is a great example of how a well managed tower block can be made to succeed. When the old Holly Street was demolished, the developers left this one block with the condition that it should only be used for those over the age of 50. It has proved to be a great success providing a safe and comfortable home for many elderly people in retirement.
This will now all change with a letter to Kenneth Gilmour of the TMO from Jules Pipe confirming that it will no longer be exclusively for the elderly and that young families could move in.
Tower blocks are no place for families to grow up. There is no play space (landings are not playgrounds) and it’s only natural that young families are noisier than pensioners. Young families need homes with gardens and near to areas for children to play. There are plenty of elderly people who are rattling around in larger council properties because their families have moved on. A secure and peaceful environment like that at 355 would be just the kind of place that many would love to move to, freeing up their larger home for a young family.
Hackney have already got rid of Bayton Court, the sheltered home near London Fields. By making 355 less attractive to the elderly, they are removing yet another haven for them to retire to.