Forum Topic

Living in 'Heathrow Quarter'

I found reading the following article a bit dispiriting.http://property.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/property/article4999423.eceI'm sure Ms. Marnie Readman and the other new residents are nice people but as she says herself she spends no time in Brentford. Julia of Quilliams makes a good point in the article that despite the developers good intentions of putting cafes and other social infrastructure in these developments they don't guarantee the creation of a vibrant community as we have seen at Ferry Quays.Despite the brave claims by Barretts in the article reading between the lines it seems that although they are giving generous incentives to buyers the flats are not selling as quickly as they would like. The first phase of 111 flats has yet to sell out and there are a lot more to come.The problem is that the damage is done with too many of these developments having been built but no family homes for the area. Even if people do move into the new flats how concerned are they going to be about Brentford and its future?

Dan Evans ● 6420d3 Comments

Dan - I don't know about you but I have yet to fathom what the phrase 'young professionals' actually encompasses, and personally I'd like to see more local people able to afford housing in the local areas - not everyone earns £30,000 upwards a year. Even all the part rent- part buy schemes are out of the reach of my two sons as they both work in the public sector.

Vanessa Smith ● 6419d

Given the proximity to a major road it isn't an unattractive place but I don't think any amount of landscaping will stop it being predominantly a dormitory block. Ferry Quays is in a much more attractive location and it hasn't really taken off as a community.

Dan Evans ● 6419d

The picture looked quite attractive.  I hope the whole development is visually attractive and there's plenty of green space.  I would have thought the new residents would be very keen on having an attractive environment whether they're young professionals or families.

Michael Fletcher ● 6419d