Archway shopping mall an “eyesore”

Residents have slammed the derelict state of Archway shopping mall and demanded the landlord takes action.

Several raised concerns about litter, empty shops and the bleak appearance of the once-thriving area next to the post office which stretches behind Archway Tube Station.

Lazari Investments, a company based in Highgate Hill which owns the land, has faced calls from the Archway Town Centre Management Group and now angry shoppers to spend cash on improving the standard of the site.

Hundreds of workers and visitors pass through the mall everyday because it links the top of Holloway Road and Junction Road.

Resident Peter Compton, of Dartmouth Park Hill, photographed the overgrown weeds and sent the picture to the Gazette.

He said: “The area looks appalling and has been for some time.”

Micheal Connolly, 67, a resident of Dartmouth Park Hill for more than 20 years, said: “At one stage all these shops were filled but the current environment is terrible.

“Something like a vibrant cafe would be good. This is quite a prominent town centre site but it has been neglected.”

Hak Huseyin, chairman of the Archway Town Centre Management Group, said members and Islington Council have been calling for the landowner to take action and added: “It has become an eyesore. Unfortunately there’s not a lot we can do because they are a private landlord.”

George Attens, manager of Lazari Investments, said: “It could be better but there are plans for the mall which we cannot discuss further at this stage. The cleaning will however be intensified.”

Read this week’s Islington Gazette for more views on the story.