On one of the local Facebook groups there has been some discussion of the latest as regards the Capitol becoming a branch of Gambado’s. The latest there is that a manager in Superdrug had told a commenter that squatters had occupied the site and Gambado’s has thrown in the towel and abandoned any hope of completing the conversion from pub to children’s play area. Work seemed to have started when I walked past a couple of days ago, so this is posted with a health warning, but I felt it worth sharing none the less.
(I was going to post this on the existing Capitol thread but that doesn’t seem to be open to replies.)
I know they recently covered the doors to stop people looking inside, but it was always a bit strange why Gambado went for this site where there’s no car parking where other sites they own have adequate parking for kids and parents.
Two hours free parking behind Sainsbury’s and lots of public transport connections as well as being close to many homes. This seems more sensible than their previous location in Lower Sydenham which was some distance from public transport and quite far from most homes.
I am actually in touch with the owner so I’ve asked him about this directly, and I am happy to report that this is just one of those rumours.
Yes, there had been squatters (as probably happens in many empty buildings) but it has been sorted and the site is already being stripped out (as planned) and they are still hoping to open later in the year.
As for the parking issue, it is good to see that we are planning local destinations that do not require increasing parking. There is no need to drive to Forest Hill with all the public transport options already here, and this also means we are more likely to see more people walking past the other shops and cafes on our high street, not bypassing them in a car, so I think of this as a positive rather than a negative.
When our kids were young we were forced to drive to the Gambado site in Beckenham (terrible for parking) and I really hated it. If I could have walked to a local site, it would have been so much better.
The proof will be in the pudding. Will they manage to attract the middle class parents who use Beckenham by getting them on a bus that stops outside Gambado or take the risk of the 2 hour free parking at Sainsbury’s to use it or will they attract a new clientele that uses public transport to reach the venue?
I speak from some experience here as the Lordship Lane Estate until Covid had a play area in their tenants hall on weekday mornings, the majority were car owning parents who attended.
Don’t get me wrong, less use of cars is welcome, but they have to look at the target audience for those who can afford to attend.
The good thing about Sainsbury’s parking is that you have to use the app for free parking (except Sunday) and then if you are likely to be for more than 2 hours you can top up from your phone. This gives car driving parents the flexibility to continue on to Horniman or a local restaurant after play time.
But the Capitol is the perfect location for public and private transport options.
The existing nurseries have always attracted a large number of driving parents, the sort that want the spot RIGHT outside. But thankfully cycling to drop off and pick up seems to be the thing at the moment.
I don’t imagine the idea of parking in Sainsburys then the faff of getting across to the Capitol appeals to some, and can see many a dangerous dash across the road between the crossings for those who “don’t have the time” to walk to one.
I meant to post about this the other day, but I actually had the chance to go inside the building while the work was ongoing to talk to the owner this week. The work is definitely going ahead, fast.
The space looks enormous and they’re even uncovering some of the original features that were covered up by the tacky stuff put up for the bingo and pub.
He’s got lots of great plans for all sorts of entertainment (there’s even a stage coming back), so this will be a really exciting thing to happen here in Forest Hill (as well as a rare opportunity to create some local jobs).
I believe there are still several months of work to go, but I believe that the plan is still to open this year.
Perhaps there’s an opportunity to make it a dual-use venue, something for kids during the day and adults in the evening. It does feel like a shame when large venues like this tend to shut quite early. Since Wetherspoons left, the town centre definitely feels quieter at night.
On the transport side, I’m not sure it’s quite as simple as “most people will just use public transport”. The swimming pool and gym nearby suggest otherwise, when classes are on, the surrounding streets quickly become congested and heavily parked.
Hopefully Gambados manages to attract a mix of people who walk, use public transport, and those who drive.
Another factor is that the buses at least in the daytime are busy with buggies and school parties that go to Hornimans which may be an issue depending on the time parents use Gambado’s.
But I’d support if the building is used in the evenings for other events alongside the children’s activities during the day.
I’m afraid that this idea for the evenings will not be possible. I understand the idea, and wondered about it myself, but this will be a space that will be built specifically for kids, and will have a great deal of safeguarding issues to consider.
I’m not sure what adults might do at the empty tables around the play equipment in the evening in any case. Remember, there will be a huge 3 or 4 storey play tower right in the middle of the space that used to have the bar & tables, … and no, you can’t use the slides, before you ask
What I do hope is that there will be occasional evening tours to discuss the history of the building and see the remaining original features, but these will probably have to be occasional.
Just as a matter of interest, I was born and brought up in the area and remember going to the Capitol in the 60s when it was a cinema. As a nipper we used to go to ‘Saturday Morning Pictures’ but also saw big features with our parents such as The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire and 2001 A Space Odyssey. It was a magical experience going to the cinema in those days as tellies were small and black and white - a big screen with colour was sensational. The fact it was a magnificent building too didn’t really occur to me till I was much older!
Buildings like these have amazing histories that bring out great stories, like the above.
In this case, we also received the following message from a previous resident of the area which I have permission to share:
My family lived at 13 Hindsley Place from 1900 to 1990. My great grandfather was a master plasterer. He did fancy work and decorative plasterwork and stucco at Dulwich College and Horniman’s Museum. He also did all the stucco in the Capital Cinema. We are very proud of his work.
We drove up recently (we live now in Devon) because we heard the Capital was being refurbished and I was hoping to blag an example of Great Grandad’s work if it was being removed. When we got there it was all locked and a notice on the door said Gambado.
I read the society’s piece “Latest Plans for the Capital” and was pleased to see the building has a grade two listing so I guess the interior and the décor (and the plaster) will remain as-is; I hope so.
Indeed, these features are being retained and even enhanced, so I do hope you get to visit when this is done.
All i will add to this thread is that I feel its a great shame that such a large and indeed Iconic building is to be used soley in daytime hours for only a portion of our community (ie: parents/carers and small kids).
Although I actually never went there Wetherspoons was open all day and many elderly residents and people working and living in the area could go for a cheap meal (even breakfast) and a warm place to sit and socialise.
There are no real music or entertainment venues in the vicinity and not enough multi funtional community spaces.
Call me an old hippie or idealist but it would be wonderful if somewhere like The Capitol could be a multi funtional space with a portion open in the evening for film screenings, live music, drinks,knitting groups etc etc..I really wish we had somewhere like Catford House here.
somewhere multi generational and not expensive, a real community hub for people to connect, do courses, drop in etc
I agree about the lack of a Catford House style venue in FH. But I would love to see more use of the building tucked behind Firezza pizza known currently as the GRAN, but previously the Grand Palladium, and before that an iconic music venue that saw many iconic acts play - I forget the name. It’s a proper tardis-like structure if you’ve ever been in there. I went to an MP hustings there a few years ago, when Ellie Reeves was first elected.
On a much smaller scale, there was a place on Dartmouth Road called Doopo Doopo around 2013 that was a kind of mixed crafts and clothes shop at the front with a multi-use basement with artists studios and a screening space, all of which I thought were brilliant.
Soon after it closed, I was negotiating to [try to] buy the old bakery premises at No.41 Dartmouth road to do something similar because, amazingly deceptively, that tiny little shopfront masks an amazing high-ceilinged space behind with stairs down to a large, usable basement.
Unfortunately, the owner was really difficult to deal with so nothing happened, but even worse than that is it’s STILL sitting there, inaccessible to Forest Hill’s needs for some of the things that you’ve mentioned.
