David Bowie childhood home plans opposed by neighbours

People living near David Bowie's south-east London childhood home have objected to plans to turn it into a visitor attraction, saying a scheme expected to draw 20,000 people a year is too much for a quiet suburban street.

The Heritage of London Trust (HOLT) has applied to Bromley Council to restore 4 Plaistow Grove, where Bowie lived from the age of eight to 20, and build a visitor centre in the garden.

Residents say the entrance, parking and evening events have not been thought through.

HOLT said the project would "bring value to the area".

Ruth Dickie lives next door at number 6. The 14 sq m visitor centre, at 3m tall, would stand against her garden fence and rise almost a metre above it.

She said she had felt "sick" since the plans were announced, and was considering leaving the house she shared with her husband Jim, who died two years ago.

"He had Parkinson's and dementia so this was a safe place for him. The garden here was our solace. I pottered while he sat," she said.

HOLT said the centre was in line with other garden buildings nearby and designed "explicitly to reduce our impact on nearby properties".

It added: "By ensuring that visitors are kept on site, briefed within an enclosed building, and spend a limited amount of time within the garden, we will all act to reduce both visual and auditory impact for our neighbours."

Residents say they learned of the scheme only when it was announced in January , and that meetings since have felt like exhibitions rather than consultations.

Ollie Pain, who lives on the street, said: "We're not saying it's a terrible idea and it can never happen, but rather the people who are running the outfit are dismissive and arrogant and the plan in its current form is not viable."

Their most pointed objection is to the proposed entrance, a rear alley used by residents to reach their gardens and by The Crown pub for deliveries.

Four industrial bins stand there and do not appear in the planning documents. HOLT did not respond when asked what would happen to them.

The pub's landlady, who asked not to be named, called the plans "horrendous" and said there was nowhere else the bins could go.

HOLT said visitors would be directed to a car park a three-minute walk away and to the railway station, and that it was in "detailed conversation" with the council about travel.

The application also asks for permission for up to 10 evening events a year for about 45 people, which HOLT said were needed for financial sustainability after the intended opening hours were cut.

The trust said it had been in "regular contact" with residents and had held four events since January.

The council has received 58 objections and seven letters of support. A decision is expected in late September.

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