Battle to save Mall is over
A FAINT hope of saving the flagship building at the heart of Islington's famous Camden Passage antiques quarter has been lost. Developer London and Associated Properties has won the last in a long series of battles to convert The Mall into a home for fashion chain Jack Wills.
The Mall, off Upper Street, had almost 40 collectables traders until they were evicted last summer. And on Tuesday night, LAP won planning permission to do a host of work to the building - including knocking out the internal partitions that used to make up the traders' small shops.
An Islington Council planning committee - which had already been overruled by a Government inspector when it last year tried to refuse listed building consent for the works - decided that there were now no grounds to refuse planning permission.
Labour councillor Martin Klute, who campaigned on behalf of The Mall, stood down from the committee so he could beg his colleagues to refuse permission. He said: "I am outraged. There is no benefit to Islington in what LAP is doing." LAP, which has started the work, was unavailable for comment.
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