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Peel Holdings Vs Democracy

AD | 12.05.2007 10:53 | Free Spaces | History | Social Struggles | Liverpool

Peel Holdings, owners of Mersey Docks reveal their anti-democratic and secretive ways.

Lindsey Ashworth, Peel Director reveals in 'Vision' the rag that means business- available at most corporate shit holes around town, that Peels' plans for Liverpool Docks can not be allowed to fall due to the objections of local people.

" The system (planning process) is not set up to deliver projects like this and allowing individual objectors to speak up and slow the process is of no use."

Suggesting the setting up of an agency to side step planning problems.

The Projects refered to are - yes you guessed it- Apartments- 23,000 of them- and we all know how much the city needs these!!

In truth asset inflation modules- created to take up space and create false scarcity in the housing market- Peel don't do family accommodation- no- 'cos families need things like schools and health centres- fact is Peel don't do people- Peel do empty spaces- it's more profitable- in truth it represents the capitalist squatting of city (working class) land.

pick up a copy of Vision and see how shit their vision really is- Vision masquerades as an independent journal but its articles aren't cited and is in truth a PR project from Peel accepted by the Liverpool Docile Echo without criticism

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Comments

Hide the following 6 comments

resist

12.05.2007 12:47

the same process is global
however here in this 3rd world city in England the vultures masquerading under culture a re snatching the land and turning it into a colony for foreign multi nationals to explot the transient precarious labour.
to do this however they need the acquiescence and subservience of the people or their representatives ..this is the nub..thinking needs to change go over to the offensive and seize it back mass occupations and social spaces aganst private property and luxury flat mania.

how do we oppose do you stick to the law or do you make your own laws in the resistance
legal or illegal? play by their rules rich mens rule..
play it safe or go all out and stage and uprising of revolt not, a cheesy we love liverpool everthings great smile for theb cameras, spell my name in the paper correct,festival, a another safety valve to let off steam..
but a real struggle a total war to the
death..against the mafia corruption and gangsterism that are the only things growing in the city..either we take back the city for the people or the city expells us to the wastelands and fringes and gates off the undesirables and unregistered ..the elections pah!
nothing has changed another pig has stuck his nose in the feed me trough of council swill,available to the elect select favoured few..

germany is rocking b4 the g8 even starts so should we..

johno


asset inflation

12.05.2007 14:33

I'm interested in this idea as I live in a city with loads of one bedroom flats being built and no infrastructure/family homes.
Can someone explain what asset inflation is.
Have looked on the web and found some really complicated/capitalist bull stuff.

beck


Moaners and Knockers

13.05.2007 17:09

So Peel Holdings are trying to provide somethign decent in the city - surely that's good and local people should appreaciate that.
What have you knockers and moaners got to offer? I guess nothing but going for your handouts down the benefit office -complaining becasue no-one is giving you more for doing nothing.
Have you got any better ideas for the docks area?

Donald Burham


dont be fooled donald

13.05.2007 18:38

despite their rhetoric and expensive P.R. efforts, Peel Holdings have the same goal as any other commercial venture:
"With a land holding of some 14,000 acres, a commercial property investment portfoliio worth in the region of £1.700 million and a track record of high quality development, the Peel Group is a major player on the property stage," (www.peel.co.uk)
They are not trying to make liverpool a better place for all, they are not trying to do you a favour, you owe them nothing, you especially don't owe them gratitude, 'they' the company simply intends to make a profit and grow at all costs, whether environmental or social etc. Until very recently, on behalf of the shareholders, it was actually illegal for a company to do anything other than aim to make a profit. This law has been altered slightly, but not to the extent that it would alter the behaviour of a company.

In response to "Have you got any better ideas for the docks area?" YES many people have and that is why we are cheesed off that we can only expect to see the same boring stuff going up in every city- in this case, 'luxury' apartments, most of which will remain empty. It can be hard to imagine a world in which we work to provide things that we want and need, because instead, we are brought up to consider work as something that must make a monetary profit for someone. I would like to imagine what the docks could be used for to meet peoples' needs and desires, rather than make profit. For example, the article mentions family homes, health centres and schools. Many people are committed to creating spaces that are not commercial in Merseyside. I believe that it is important to be critical of the changes that are being made to the city in our name, you may call this moaning, but it tends to come hand in hand with attempting to create positive alternatives in every day life.

jezabel


economic jargon

13.05.2007 19:22

hey beck, i had a browse of www.economist.com and it came up with:

'Asset' = Things that have earning power or some other value to their owner.

There was a lot on inflation, including the following which I found interesting;

'money illusion' = When people are misled by inflation into thinking that they are getting richer, when in fact the value of money is declining… Because of money illusion, workers like to see their nominal wages rise, giving them the illusion that their circumstances are improving, even though in real (inflation-adjusted) terms they may be no better off. During periods of high inflation double-digit pay rises (as well as, say, big increases in the value of their homes) can make people feel richer even if they are not really better off. When inflation is low, growth in real incomes may hardly register.

dependable wikipedia threw up the following, i summarize as;

'Asset inflation'=

A common phenomenon throughout richer nations, is that assets (such as housing, stocks, and bonds) are inflating faster than the consumer price index or the commodity price index.

For instance, the money price level of bread and milk has risen by 1-5% annually in most rich countries since the mid 1980s, but real estate prices in those same countries have inflated at least twice as fast in money terms. At the same time, business assets are becoming more expensive.

If this trend continues those with "little or no net worth" will find it harder and harder to join the "ownership society" as the proportion of average salary required to buy any sort of limited asset (especially housing) increases.

Hope that helped, I know this is still a lot of jargon, but i'll check some a-level economics books that might have a more accessible way of explaining. I suspect that the richer countries will always find ways of bending the rules of economics to ensure that they stay rich (such as the invention of huge debt), so part of me thinks that whatever the jargon, it has the same meaning- majority need to be poor so the rich can get richer and in the end, no-ones 'well-off'.

jezabel


Betterv Uses for the Docks area- OK what about...

14.05.2007 12:31


Well, it's interesting to see Peel's image of the future- most interesting is that North Liverpool - the area behind Peel's high rises- were people live- are shown in muddy brown as opposed to peel's gleaming towers!

Do we need the docks?

Man made reclaimed land 150 years old- now with no purpose- why not demolish and have a public beach-park as you can find in Barcelona?

If you are going to build does it have to be apartments designed to be empty forever?

Peel's business model is:
1) Build 23,000 apartments
2) 21,000 bought off plan by us- or front companies.
3)Create false scarcity
4)other 2,000 bought by other investors at the new higher value.
5)Peel owns the increased equity in its 21,000.
6)Peel raises cash on the stock markets on the basis of this equity
7)Peel plays the currancy markets with the proceeds.
8)Apartments lie empty forever as to sell them would reveal the true abundance and the pack of cards would come down.

Note that in the whole process - people are not involved hence why you never see any people in any images of Peel's 'visions'.

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