Update from Future Merton team

Jake Lister from Kanda, a public and stakeholder consultation company working jointly for the council and Transport for London on Morden regeneration, presented the results of the recent consultation that was carried out on the regeneration programme.

Focus Groups were held in September 2018 with councillors and stakeholder groups where a series of design principles were looked at, including the Station Forecourt, Green and Open Spaces, and Type and Quality of the High Street.

Attendees at the focus groups had a constructive discussion where they raised a number of important factors to be included in the design of the town centre such as:

•              Improving the pedestrian experience along London Road – as the station forecourt is currently very congested

•              Emphasising Morden’s already brilliant green spaces and linking them together

•              That they would like to see more active frontages along the high street to encourage visitors to stay and shop

Further consultations will be taking place and anyone interested in further information can contact the team.

Public Drop-Ins were held over 3 days with a series of high street stalls outside Sainsburys, Iceland and the Underground. These were held to gather feedback on what amenities the local community would like to see brought forward as part of the regeneration of Morden Town Centre, and to determine local priorities and aspirations for regeneration. The events were designed to gather data on areas of activity in the Town Centre and how the local community navigates through the Town Centre and to other nearby amenities.

A number of different methods were used for gathering the feedback including a survey, maps for people to identify their routes into the town centre and areas they visit, and a board on which members of the public could identify what amenities they would like to see in the new town centre.

The events were attended by over 150 members of the local community. The general consensus from attendees at the events was that there was a need for improvements to the Town Centre and that they generally welcomed the regeneration project. Members of the public believed that the green spaces in the borough and the public transport links were the most successful assets in the area. Many residents stated that they would like to see improvements to the existing retail offer of the Town Centre, with the aspiration that more independent, high quality shops be delivered as part of the regeneration. There was similarly an interest in nighttime uses, including pubs, bars and restaurants. Residents also ranked reducing traffic congestion as their number one issue for the town centre improvement.

Eben van der Westhuizen, the project lead on the More Morden Regeneration project updated residents on the next steps. There will be public consultation on the draft Merton Local Plan over the next six weeks. The new Local Plan will hopefully then be adopted in early 2020, with phased works targeted to start in 2021. It will take approximately a year to procure a development partner. There are no detailed designs yet and these will only be worked up once a development partner has been appointed.

When asked about funding for the project, Eben said that the council is submitting bids where possible.

Asked for an update on the potential Tramlink extension, Eben said that from 31 October for about six weeks, TfL will run a separate consultation on this. The MoreMorden project has to accommodate any new tram route.

A new project website will be launched in the next few months – hopefully before the end of the year. Until then, for updates, details can be found on the Council’s own website. Electronic newsletters are also sent out, which residents can sign up for.