Features / Local Elections 2021
Ward profiles 2021: Bedminster – ‘Why are the council building on every blade of grass?’
Sean Donnelly, the landlord of the Three Lions on West Street and the owner of the Masonic on North Street, is still considering whether or not to stand for Bristol mayor in May.
With both of his pubs and his beloved Bristol City located in Bedminster ward, this is the area of Bristol which he knows best.
For Sean, Bedminster has as many positives as negatives, with the two often intertwined. For example, “street art: fantastic. Tagging, vandalism: terrible.”
is needed now More than ever
He says that the “marvellous array of eateries” – among which he names Clark’s Pies, Argus fish and chip shop, and Mezzaluna – is a huge positive.
“The minus is it’s impossible to park to use these outlets… I have a property on West Street and cannot park anywhere near.
“Each house has 1.5 cars so why are Bristol City Council cramming houses on every blade of grass they can find?”
Factory No. 1 is a new gated development on East Street with an on-site concierge service – photo: Martin Booth
Prices at Factory No. 1 on East Street, which in a former life was the first tobacco factory built by the Wills dynasty, rise to £435,000 for a two-bedroom flat.
Nearby, the proudly independent Bristol Loaf came in for some vociferous criticism when it opened last year.
“East Street is slowly having its weird, unique character stripped away and will end up looking just like any other bland, faceless street,” tweeted Charlie Revelle-Smith, author of Weird Bristol.
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Read more: East Street is changing
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The next major development in Bedminster could be the transformation of St Catherine’s Place on East Street.
Scaled-back plans have now been approved for 180 homes, fewer shops and no cinema, despite continued concerns from dozens of residents and councillors’ own reticence over a number of aspects of the plan.
The new plans mean the tallest residential block is now 14 storeys instead of 17 storeys, but there is no affordable housing promised any more.
“East Street is slowly having its weird, unique character stripped away,” says Charlie Revelle-Smith, author of Weird Bristol. – photo: Martin Booth
Stretching from Ashton Vale Trading Estate in the south, to the Cumberland Basin in the north, Bedminster ward covers a large amount of the BS3 area.
UWE Bristol’s Bower Ashton campus is located in the far west and the junction between East Street and West Street marks the furthest point in the east.
The ward is currently represented by Labour councillors Celia Phipps and Mark Bradshaw, who picked up a combined 40 per cent of the vote in 2016.
In a joint statement to Bristol24/7, Phipps and Bradshaw praised Bedminster’s “amazingly strong, cooperative community ethos which has been tested to the full during the pandemic”.
What are its challenges? “Like many areas, traffic, and air quality, but also affordability and availability of homes and pressure on green spaces. The challenge is to ensure fairness and growth, balanced with protecting cherished biodiversity and providing space for people of all ages to enjoy.”
Under the raised areas in South Street Park is rubble from the bombed houses that used to be part of a network of closely-packed terraced streets – photo: Martin Booth
“Mark and Celia have been fully engaged with the community, working alongside us to deliver projects and run events,” says Stef Brammar, a member of Action Greater Bedminster and Friends of South Street Park.
“They’ve helped us to get more trees into our neighbourhood and were instrumental in transforming South Street Park from a barren wasteland to a popular local green space and playground.”
Confirmed so far to stand against the incumbent Labour councillors on May 6 will be Tessa Fitzjohn and Louis Williams of the Green Party, and Alex Birrell and Fergus Ustianowski for the Lib Dems.
North Street is Bedminster’s main thoroughfare – photo: Martin Booth
With Ashton Gate Stadium located inside the ward, plans to develop a new “urban village” development 500 metres from the current site and a 4,000-seater arena for the Bristol Flyers basketball team could lead to more big changes.
The Clean Air Zone will also include parts of Bedminster. The area to the west of Greville Smyth Park, which includes part of the Cumberland Basin, will be part of the proposed ‘Zone D’.
“We’d like cleaner air and less traffic, more support for walkers and cyclists, more trees and planting,” says Stef. “Too much through traffic and bad air quality are ongoing issues, as are graffiti, litter and fly-tipping.”
She added: “There is a strong sense of community here, which will be more important than ever as the economy and home life recover post-Covid.
“We’d welcome more opportunities and encouragement for young people to further their education and/or to take a first step into the world of work through local apprenticeships.
“And most importantly, we hope to see more diversity in the groups participating in grassroots planning and decision making.”
Main photo: Martin Booth
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