This week the Evening Standard reported that Notting Hill Gate is up for sale.
If you have a spare £130million, a chunk of this street could be yours! In all seriousness though, this could be a real opportunity for a dreary thoroughfare to become a place people actually want to spend time. So rather than dashing through to Westfield, Portobello Road or Kensington (or at best staying there but only diving straight into the cinemas), imagine Notting Hill Gate with cool little independent cafes, art spaces, proper fruit and veg shops and so on.
But before we get too excited there are a couple of things to remember; firstly there’s no getting away from that fact that it is a major traffic artery. Secondly, and more importantly, a genuine community has to develop organically; it can’t be bought in. Luckily, in and around Notting Hill Gate there is a large group of local residents that could and should play a big part in deciding its future.