Bookmakers Paddy Power could replace iconic Body Music record shop (From Haringey Independent)

Bookmakers Paddy Power could replace iconic Body Music record shop

1:35pm Thursday 29th July 2010

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A GROUNDSWELL of anger and frustration has erupted in Tottenham following revelations an iconic music shop could become the new home of yet another betting shop.

Concerned members of the community are desperate to field off Paddy Power's attempt to jump in Body Music record shop grave which is at risk of closure after 30 years on the High Road.

The independent music outlet is a cultural hub and is the holy grail for reggae enthusiasts who flock from all corners of London to indulge their passion.

Tottenham MP David Lammy has blasted the bookmakers, who have submitted a planning application last month, for robbing the area's cultural identity while fellow critics have branded the plot an exploitation of the poor.

Rival bookmakers William Hill already has two shops in the area, and BetFred has one Gambling and are associated with crime, street drinking and is often a target for armed raiders.

Community activist Douglas Williams, of West Green Road, said: "To lose Body Music is a massive blow. To lose it and gain a bookie's is even worse.

"The area is saturated with betting shops and the only book shop in the area closed down a few years ago. We need something that will add something to our community, not help tear it apart."

In a desperate plea for support, he said: "There is no point in people complaining when the betting shop opens, it is time to act now."

In a positive twist, a Haringey Council planning officer has published a report recommended the application is refused when it goes to the council's committee, but a similar application in Green Lanes pushed the council into a drawn-out and unsuccessful court battle with Agora over their decision to refuse permission.

The officer said that a betting shop would be "an unwelcome use on a prominent corner that would have a negative impact on the centre's ability to attract retailers".

It also contradicts the Haringey Unitary Development Plan which has a policy to protect shops in the borough's town centres.

Shop vacancies in the area are extremely low which suggests that area is vibrant enough to attract a variety of small businesses.

Tottenham MP David Lammy said: "This is a complete travesty, I have known Body Music all of my life - I bought my first ever single there. This is another example where bookmakers are robbing Tottenham of its identity.

"I'm calling on the new Government to come good on its commitment to localism and the Big Society and give residents the power to have a say in what their High Street looks like."

The site itself — on the corner of West Green Road and High Road, Tottenham — falls into the area the council hopes to rejuvenate as part of the Tottenham Hale Masterplan and has been dubbed the gateway to Tottenham.

It sits adjacent to Wards Corner due to be redeveloped into luxury housing until the plan was brought to a halt by a High Court Judge who said the development showed no regard for Tottenham's diverse community.

Mr Lammy added: "I call on residents to boycott Paddy Power and other Bookmakers who take from our community but are giving nothing back in return".

He is now in the process of forming a coalition made up of gambling critics and organisations to pressure the Government to make amendments to the Decentralisation and Localism Bill set to go through parliament later this year.

The amendements would give local authorities more power to oppose betting shops based on their social impact or the number already operating in a target area.

The Tottenham MP has also written letters to Eric Pickles, the Secretary of State of Communities and Local Government, in charge of the Bill, and will meet Greg Clark MP, the man in charge on the "localism" element in September.

A public meeting is being held tonight at Tottenham Chances, 399, High Road, Tottenham, at 7.30pm, to discuss the threat.

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