Residents of Plaistow Grove in Bromley, where David Bowie lived from age 8 to 20, have criticised the Heritage of London Trust (HOLT) for its plans to restore the house and build a visitor centre, calling the proposal “horrendous, naïve and sloppy.” The plans, submitted to Bromley Council, include a 3.06-metre-tall visitor centre in the garden, which neighbours say will ruin their peaceful residential street.
Residents Feel Their Home is Under Threat
Ruth Dickie, who lives at 6 Plaistow Grove, directly next door to the Bowie House, said she felt “sick” since the announcement of the project earlier this year. The proposed visitor centre would be located right next to her garden fence, and she fears the influx of 20,000 annual visitors will compromise her domestic peace.
“I am having my right to my home taken away from me,” Dickie stated. Her husband Jim passed away nearly two years ago, and she cherishes the home they shared. “This is the house that my husband and I spent his last years. 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.
Dickie added, “I love this house. We both loved it. I love it all the more because it’s the last place we shared after 56 years of marriage. I had no intention of ever wanting to leave it. Now, I'm not sure anymore. I don’t want to leave it, but I’m not sure that this will be the place for me to stay. All it makes me now think is that I am having my right to my home taken away from me.”
Residents Association Criticises Lack of Consultation
Julie Davies, Chair of Plaistow Grove Residents Association, said, “The safeguarding of this Grove is threatened completely by the number of people who are strangers to this place who are going to come and invade it.” Many residents were “shocked” when they first heard news of the project, as none had been informed before it was announced globally on January 8, what would have been Bowie’s 79th birthday.
Davies recounted, “I had a phone call from Australia from a friend who came to see me last year. She rang and said: ‘Your street is on the news in Australia’. I had no idea. We had no idea that this was all going on before the rest of the globe did.”
Following the announcement, residents were invited to meetings, but many felt these were more like exhibitions than consultations. Suggestions, such as locating the visitor centre in a less residential area like Bromley High Street, were ignored. Resident Ollie Pain said, “There was that initial arrogance and assumption in the way that they’ve gone about it that’s persisted throughout. 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.”
Specific Concerns: Bins, Parking, and Events
Residents have identified specific problems with the plans. The proposed entrance, a rear alley, is currently taken up by four industrial-sized bins used by The Crown pub and is used by residents to access their back gardens. The pub’s landlady, who wished to remain anonymous, called the proposal “horrendous” and said HOLT had not contacted her until this month, after she intended to object. She said the alley was used several times a day for deliveries, and there was nowhere else to put the bins. Evidence of the bins is absent from the planning documents, and HOLT provided no response when asked about them.
Parking is another concern. HOLT said visitors will be directed to park in the nearby Sundridge Park Village Car Park, three minutes’ walk away. However, residents fear that because Plaistow Grove’s permits only offer daily one-hour restrictions, visitors arriving outside that time will park on their road. The car park has also been identified by Bromley Council as a potential site for future council housing, but HOLT said it was unable to comment on those plans.
The proposal also includes up to 10 evening events a year, which could attract around 45 people each. Residents speculate these could be cocktail parties or late-night celebrations, creating a noise nuisance. HOLT said these events would operate with restricted numbers and be “either a higher ticket cost for an exclusive viewing or by invitation to special guests.”
HOLT Defends Plans, But Objections Mount
A HOLT spokesperson said, “Celebrating the role Bromley and South London played in the early life of David Bowie, one of the UK's most successful musical artists, is at the heart of our proposals for 4 Plaistow Grove. We are incredibly excited about the opportunity to bring his house to life again and create an inspirational visitor experience which will bring value to the area and which local people can be proud of. We have had a brilliant response to the project and look forward to continuing to work with local residents as we develop the project.”
HOLT said the visitor centre was designed “explicitly to reduce our impact on nearby properties” and that it had been in “regular contact” with residents, holding four events starting January 20. The trust said it had “wherever possible, sought to take on board feedback from all those who participated.”
Katie Turner, who lives opposite at 9 Plaistow Grove and has experience in the museums and heritage industry, initially was excited but now believes the proposal is “naïve and sloppy.” She said, “What they are hoping to do is just far too extensive and extravagant for the site. They just want to operate something that isn’t what that site is.”
Since the planning application was submitted two months ago, it has received 58 objections and seven letters of support. Bromley Council is scheduled to make a decision on the scheme in late September.
