New gate in Ham Street

A while ago I posted a picture of the work in progress of the gate into Palm Centre from Ham Street and now that it is finished it looks like a job very well done. The gate itself is firmly built and the black colour helps it to hide while the wall has been neatly rebuilt to accommodate it.

A new house in Bainbridge Close

The boarding had been there for a while and now a house has started to appear behind it. This is in Bainbridge Close just as it branches off Latchmere Close. It is an unusually shaped plot with several trees in it which may be why it took so long for something to be built there.

From what can be seen so far, it is a far more handsome property than Latchmere Lodge which occupies the part of the site that fronts on to Church Road.

Remembering Royal Oak

What was Royal Oak is now Ham Village Centre (HVC). It is good to see the building back in use and that the people behind HVC are keen on local history. As part of this the pub sign has been kept and has been given a prominent place in the courtyard garden.

Weathervane off Lock Road

I hope that this is a new weathervane otherwise I am not sure how I missed it before.

It is on a shed behind a house in Lock Road and can be seen from the lane that leads to the surgery and then the pumping station.

Something is happening along the towpath

Two areas in the verge between the upper and lower paths by Royal Park Gate have been cleared in preparation for something. It could be benches and it could be flowers. We will see.

The latest Huf Haus rises

I live close to Ham Farm Road and at the moment I am walking along there often to check on progress on the third Huf Haus in the area. It is now poking boldly over the boarding and already it looks comfortable in its surroundings.

Looking the other way, from Parkleys, it can be seen how the new house has been sited to fit in around the existing trees which will help to preserve the character of the area.

Converting shops to offices

The shops at the North-West end of Ham Parade have featured several times in the years that I have been recording changes in the area because the shops there have always struggled due to their being somewhat separated from the other shops and getting far fewer passers-by as a result.

Now the owner of the properties has conceded defeat that the two shops are becoming two cottages, which I presume is an euphemism for small houses.

A tidy house in Petersham

I presume that the postal address of this house is in Meadow Close but I took the picture from the end of Ashfield Close so it could be there.

Clearly it has been repainted recently and that is what caught my attention. The setting with the trees just made things better.