See you later, alligator: developer scraps South London park
Residential developer Avanton has abandoned its plan to create London’s first alligator park on Old Kent Road following “significant push-back” from Southwark council and the local community.
In January, the developer explored the idea of redeveloping a 48.8m-high Grade II gasholder into an alligator park, after it was approached by an out-of-town specialist operator looking for a spot in the capital.
The park would have been located inside the gasholder, complete with water features, a glass conservatory and pavilion, a visitor centre and landscaped parkland.
Residential developer Avanton has abandoned its plan to create London’s first alligator park on Old Kent Road following “significant push-back” from Southwark council and the local community.
In January, the developer explored the idea of redeveloping a 48.8m-high Grade II gasholder into an alligator park, after it was approached by an out-of-town specialist operator looking for a spot in the capital.
The park would have been located inside the gasholder, complete with water features, a glass conservatory and pavilion, a visitor centre and landscaped parkland.
In a statement to EG, Avanton said plans for the park “were not popular” with local residents and the council, who believed an alligator park was a “leisure step too far”.
A spokesperson for Avanton said: “We will now explore whether to create a community park instead.
“After consultation with both the council and local community, there was significant push-back on the alligator park concept, so it has been shelved. The proposals are now for some sort of community park, and Avanton will be doing an update on the concepts in the new year.”
The statement continued: “In addition, since the breakout of Covid-19, both the council and Avanton felt that having an alligator park on site would entail too many safeguard and health issues. It is complex enough dealing with Covid-19 safeguarding, without introducing an alligator park into the mix.”
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