Park Beekeeping: future uncertain

[ericbeaumont]

Blackheath Business Park, the home of Park Beekeeping in South London, may be demolished to make way for the inevitable blocks of flats.

If so - and appeals against development were made by local residents and businesses to the Mayor of London and the Sec. of State - after 36 years in business and 27 at Blackheath, Godfrey Munro may close the business.

Story was on ITN London News at 6 yesterday. More info. here at My London (you'll have to fight past the adverts).

 

[Earthboy]

Blackheath Business Park, the home of Park Beekeeping in South London, may be demolished to make way for the inevitable blocks of flats. If so - and appeals against development were made by local residents and businesses to the Mayor of London and the Sec. of State - after 36 years in business and 27 at Blackheath, Godfrey Munro may close the business.

Story was on ITN London News at 6 yesterday. More info. here at My London (you'll have to fight past the adverts).

Disappearing bee habitat seems to be numero uno concern all over the globe. In my neck of the woods, a Native American tribe replaced hundreds of green alfalfa fields of bottom land with a Walmart-type grocery store, a cement jungle overnight. I had long thought that American Indians lived in harmony with nature for a long time. One reason, I heard, was it is easy to set the septic line on a flat land.

 

[Erichalfbee]

Blackheath Business Park, the home of Park Beekeeping in South London, may be demolished to make way for the inevitable blocks of flats. If so - and appeals against development were made by local residents and businesses to the Mayor of London and the Sec. of State - after 36 years in business and 27 at Blackheath, Godfrey Munro may close the business.

Story was on ITN London News at 6 yesterday. More info. here at My London (you'll have to fight past the adverts).

My first ever poly nuc came from Park. It was a three in one, morphing from BS Nat to 14x12 to Lang. Anybody remember those?

 

[ericbeaumont]

Anybody remember those?

I've about fifteen of them, all still in use though battered here and there.

https://www.parkbeekeeping.com/product/2in1-poly-nucleus-box/

 

[Chatbees]

It will be a shame to lose Park beekeeping, if I'm not buying too much I can cycle there which saves postage and gives me a trip out

 

[GuyNir]

Great story, but can the business (if viable) not be run from a different location?

 

[ericbeaumont]

Great story, but can the business (if viable) not be run from a different location?

Godfrey is 82 (not that you'd notice) and can do without the dislocation and palaver; he also runs another business, so won't be put out to field just yet.

Pretty sure that the value of 37 years of goodwill and brand awareness would make Park an attractive proposition if he wanted to sell.

 

[Ian123]

Disappearing bee habitat seems to be numero uno concern all over the globe. In my neck of the woods, a Native American tribe replaced hundreds of green alfalfa fields of bottom land with a Walmart-type grocery store, a cement jungle overnight. I had long thought that American Indians lived in harmony with nature for a long time. One reason, I heard, was it is easy to set the septic line on a flat land.

Don’t judge on the word park it’s full of business units

 

[ericbeaumont]

Don’t judge on the word park it’s full of business units

True: it's a set of single storey units and the space they occupy is not really justifiable at current land values.

A greater loss will be the opportunity for local business to find cost-effective space; the 36 mature trees are of value, though that never seems to matter much to planning depts.

 

[Pembroke]

Disappearing bee habitat seems to be numero uno concern all over the globe. In my neck of the woods, a Native American tribe replaced hundreds of green alfalfa fields of bottom land with a Walmart-type grocery store, a cement jungle overnight. I had long thought that American Indians lived in harmony with nature for a long time. One reason, I heard, was it is easy to set the septic line on a flat land.

Maybe they do but cash talks as they say and the price of a square yard of Alfalfa compared to the rental on a square yard of Walmart store is orders of magnitude different. Aren't the native Americans big owners and runners of casinos in the states that allow such things?

Get the locals to petition for a green roof on the store, at least some bees might find a habitat there?

 

[CaptainCymru]

Disappearing bee habitat seems to be numero uno concern all over the globe. In my neck of the woods, a Native American tribe replaced hundreds of green alfalfa fields of bottom land with a Walmart-type grocery store, a cement jungle overnight. I had long thought that American Indians lived in harmony with nature for a long time. One reason, I heard, was it is easy to set the septic line on a flat land.

Bit late for that , the white man shot all their buffalo and nicked their land. They may as well get in on the act of development too. Good on them