2 Ashfield Close

Cars parked on the drive had thwarted all of my previous attempts to take a full-width picture of 2 Ashfield Close following its extensive refurbishment so I was glad to finally find it car free. The house is both distinctive and attractive.

Clarendon SEND School rises

The new Clarendon SEND School building is well underway and while this is the back of the development it is also the closest that you can get to it, as it is set well back from Meadlands Drive. From here it looks to be a staunchly traditional building with rectangular walls comprised of uniform bricks.

This may not be very exciting but it is appropriate for the area and is much better than the multi-coloured panels that many schools went for a few years ago, including the Kingston Academy extension on Richmond Road in Kingston.

Another view of The Manor House

I posted a view earlier of the works at The Manor House in Petersham looking from Montrose House and this is the view from River Lane. I suspect that the house will look much the same as it did before once all the work is finished but in the meantime it looks good covered in scaffolding.

Ham Close at street level

While the scaffolding has come down on the first blocks in the new Ham Close development there is still a lot of work to do and the red digger in the middle of the picture was busy doing something then I walked past.

What I can see of the new buildings looks good and I hope that the same care is put into the landscaping. The old Ham Close was all grass and tarmac, with too much tarmac, and I am hoping for much better in the new development. Hopefully we will see some of this soon.

KP Dry Cleaners

What used to be ROYAL Dry Cleaners (in Ham Street opposite Grey Court) has morphed into .KP Dry Cleaners. "KP" is my reading of the logo but it could be "KR" or even just "K".

This comes almost exactly a year after K S Dry Cleaners morphed into ROYAL Dry Cleaners.

Flowering egg

I do not know if this hedge was trimmed in to an egg shape for Easter but it was a good idea, despite the great deal of effort it must have taken to get the shape right. And it looks even better with some flowers growing.

This is a prominent junction and also close to a parade of shops so it must be enjoyed by many people every day. 

Evelyn refresh

Evelyn Road, off Ham Street is a slightly out of place row of Victorian cottages that seem to attract relatively high prices because of theit cuteness, certainly not because of their size. This one on the corner with Ham Street is showing its age and the refurbishment is welcome. It is gaining a rear extension too, which is no surprise.

Lost green space

I am posting another picture of the not-demolished-after-all 14 Cedar Heights because the work on the new driveway has been completed and also to make the point that while the residents of Cedar Heights and nearby are up in arms about proposed changes to a small green space at the entrance to the road this is generally how they treat their own green spaces.

Southern end of Ham Close

I am still waiting for the first stage of the Ham Close to be fully revealed and in the meantime here is a look from a different angle. This is the southern end of the development with Ashburnham Road just off to the left.

The obvious things to note are the different coloured bricks and the way that the facades are not flat, both of which make the blocks more attractive.