BERMONDSEY VILLAGE ACTION GROUP

BVAG
INFORMATION OFFICE 14 CRUCIFX LANE LONDON SE1 3JW BVAG.NET Mr John Penrose MP Minister for Tourism & Heritage Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) 2-4 Cockspur Street London SW1Y 5DH 2 December 2011 South Eastern Railway Office, Tooley St, London, SE1

Dear Mr Penrose We are aware that the distinguished Victorian building in Tooley St built as the South Eastern Railway offices is presently, or shortly will be, with you for consideration for statutory designation. BVAG is a local action group established to defend the heritage and character of the area adjacent to London Bridge Station. Unrelated to my participation in BVAG s campaign, my company, Shiva Ltd, has laboriously restored and now occupies another Victorian commercial building within a few hundred yards of the South Eastern Railway office. This building, known as Shiva, The Tanneries, is listed Grade 2 under the address of 55 Bermondsey Street. It is a handsome building and is deservedly listed. It is not however of equal merit or national importance to the SER office (nor was it comparably intact when designated in 1996). Similarly, of inferior importance to the SER office, although in other respects comparable, is the old distillery at 115 Tooley St.

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These local and comparable buildings make it odd that the SER office did not immediately enjoy a recommendation for listing by English Heritage. We know however that the issue is presently under appeal for your determination. Needless to say, I am writing to urge that the building is treated by the same standards as its neighbours and duly listed. We are of course also aware that Network Rail are keen to demolish the building. In response we have campaigned to raise public awareness of the threat and to guage local opinion on the case for demolition versus preservation. As part of this campaign we have also invited people to sign a petition to save the building, together with the already listed train shed also under threat. Copies of the first two thousand signatures to our petition are enclosed to demonstrate our findings and the strength of feeling we have found. As well as urging you to accord the South Eastern Railway office its due status, we of course also urge you to call upon Network Rail to respect the railway heritage of London Bridge in the same way as they have at other London rail termini. We are bewildered that they have chosen not to do so. Are we right in suspecting that this area is a sort of poor relation compared with other London rail termini whose heritage has bee treated with much greater respect? If so, which Government department has bestowed on us this classification? Yours sincerely

Russell Gray Encl. Petition to save SER office and Driver shed wall (first 2000 signatures)

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Opening hours: Wednesday - Friday : 12.30pm - 5.30pm.