After much speculation, Wandsworth’s planning application committee has rejected Wimbledon tennis club’s exciting but potentially problematic expansion plans. This is unsurprising considering that there was an obvious divide in the opinions of Wandsworth and Merton council prior to the official decision.
Tuesday 21 November was a big day for both Wimbledon residents and tennis fans as Wandsworth council rejected the application from the AELTC (All England Lawn Tennis Club) to undergo their plans for 38 grass tennis courts as well as a new show court, with a capacity of 8000, to be constructed on Wimbledon Park. With the expansion, the AELTC hoped to not only develop 23 acres of accessible green areas but also introduce hundreds of jobs for the Wimbledon area, promising huge economic growth; however, strong public opinion, including rejection from local MPs, argued that the expansion would have detrimental environmental impact with the loss of trees and open space.
Initially, the proposition was approved by Merton Council which voted in October for the expansion. At this stage, the expansion looked promisingly likely for the AELTC. However, because a small section of the park is under Wandsworth Council, approval from them was also necessary before the project could go ahead.
In response, the public marked their disapproval during a protest outside the chamber where the vote occurred when members of the public including many of the ‘Save Wimbledon Park’ organisation asserted their opinion on banners stating powerful remarks that the expansion was ‘elitist exploitation’ as well as saying ‘No to tennis Disneyland’.
Unsurprisingly, council action further dented the possibility of the expansion when, in addition to a petition receiving over 14,000 signatures, council MPs such as Fleur Anderson publicly supported Wandsworth council’s recommendation to refuse the proposals.
Wandsworth council’s unanimous vote of 7-0 rejecting the plans on the 21 November jeopardised the AELTC’s aspirations prompting an immediate cheer as Wimbledon residents breathed a temporary sigh of relief.
One local Southfields resident said that the rejection ‘means that I still have a place to go to walk my dog! Big co-operations can’t just think that land suddenly belongs to them, it doesn’t. It’s just a relief that the [Wandsworth] council had some sense to protect the, albeit slightly unappealing, natural area of Wimbledon Park.
The ultimate decision of the proposal will be by the Mayor of London in the coming weeks. The people have fought, the councils are not unanimous and now the fate of Wimbledon Park’s future is placed into the hands of Sadiq Khan.
