QUESTIONS have been raised as plans to bulldoze the civic centre have been nodded through Harrow council.

Labour councillors unanimously voted in favor of the what has been dubbed the biggest ever regeneration program in the borough for a generation, featuring a new civic center, around 1,000 new homes including 400 affordable homes.

The council claims the multi-million pound plans, which will be built at no cost to the taxpayer, will be the ‘catalyst’ for a transformation in Wealdstone injecting millions into the area creating new jobs and opportunity.

But some councillors say they are worried that the proposals could harm Wealdstone as it will take away the only car park in the area.

Shadow planning and regeneration portfolio holder Cllr Stephen Greek said: “Labour are potentially taking an enormous risk by buying land instead of using land the council already owns, and have actually ignored sites that were less risky and had the advantage of being closer to Harrow town centre.

“As for promising to deliver the new Civic Centre for free – the bulk of the money is actually a loan from the GLA that the Council has to pay back.

“There are more practical worries, too – from the fact that Wealdstone will lose the only major car park it has, to no money being set aside to re-design roads and re-route traffic.

“How does it regenerate an area if you take away all the car parking and driving through it becomes a nightmare?”

The new Civic Centre would be built on the site of the Peel House car park in Wealdstone, while space for new schools, community centers and businesses will be created on the current civic centre site.

Cllr Greek added: “Labour have rushed this major decision through Cabinet and Council in just one week – making sure it cannot be properly scrutinised – and despite making noises about cross-party working they have so far refused to let the opposition receive briefings on the plans.

“This is one of the most important decisions in Harrow for a generation, and residents deserve much better than these half-baked plans.”

Work on the project is expected to start by 2017 and the new civic centre, just a fifth of the size of the current building, could be completed by 2019.

Harrow Council leader, David Perry said: “I am delighted our proposals have been passed. Now the real work can start to building a better Harrow together, for today, and for future generations.

“We are creating the places and the opportunities that our communities deserve: a thriving, modern and vibrant borough that makes Harrow a home to be proud of.

“We want all of our residents to help us with these plans and I have set up a resident’s panel, which met this week to help us design a new hub for the people of Harrow. I look forward to working with them in the coming months.”

Approval of the plans closely followed the first meeting of the Harrow resident’s regeneration panel, which is made up of 15 volunteers from all corners of the borough with a variety of different expertise and experience of community involvement.

The panel will regularly meet directly with the most senior council members and officers to begin contributing to the early formation of regeneration proposals.

The council considered a wide variety of regeneration options, including renting or buying existing offices or building homes and offices on other sites around the borough. Ultimately all were rejected on cost or efficiency grounds.

The new plans stand to win the council £8.8 million straight away from the GLA’s regeneration pot.