Anyone know why the arches of the Rail Station of Clapham North are boarded up?
Anything interresting coming up?

The credit crunch is biting hard and appears to be affecting the many bijou housing construction projects littered around Clapham. The huge  construction site on Macaulay Road in the old town has now been abandoned and is in the  process of being sold off as the the developers are worried that they may not be able to sell the flats for a profit due to the crunch.   There is speculation that the new library project may be similarly abandoned if the developers get cold feet about the viability of their housing scheme above the proposed library, so watch this space!

I have noticed a considerable increase over the last year, I think the problem lies with the over generous Claphamites, word gets around there is a good living to be  made  by the  naive locals by sitting outside Sainsbury's or under the  ATM. 
I'll never forget the day I was waiting for a m8 outside Sainsbury's near where the  bearded man and  dog lay, somebody dropped him a £1 coin just as the 'so called' vagrant's  mobile phone rang!!! he looked embarrased then stood up to the corner of the wall and answered it, If I was generous enough I'd buy him a top up card  :0)                 

At the risk of sounding like a Tory NIMBY (which I'm not) I've noticed an increase in the number of vagrant and alcoholics on the high street and its environs. You are generally accosted each time you come out of the tube or walk up to a cash point or come out of Sainsbury's. The proximity of Clapham's watering holes and prponderance of betting shops have not helped the cause. I have no problem with people of whatever description hanging around but it becomes problematic when you get harassed from time to time. I work in Angel and hardly will you find this scenario. Neither will you find it in Battersea or Balham. What's the problem with Clapham?

The answer is that small businesses are being squeezed out by the Council’s high rates. Unlike Wandsworth Council, Lambeth has no business development strategy worth noting to attract new small businesses to the area. There are no incentives to help small businesses stay alive on the high street or within its vicinity. It is also likely that Clapham High Street attracts higher business rates than other parts of suburban Lambeth for obvious reasons. Verso was a brilliant Italian restaurant but suffered from being out of reach of the high street’s passing trade due to its location down Clapham Park road. Clapham Park road has great potential if it is marketed as a business zone within the area and people are sign posted to it, likewise the Old Town. But I think apart from that, the rates are just too high in Clapham and residents are being made to pay West End prices for drinks and food and literally everything else. It is also generally assumed that Clapham is swarming with wealthy folk.