The demolition of Dollis Hill House is underway, as reported in the Brent Times. Contrary to the story, there have been repeated attempts to find a viable future for Dollis Hill House. I have detailed them here. They have foundered on three aspects: lack of capital, planning objections and lack of ongoing funding.
Lack of capital: All projected schemes over the past eighteen years during which the site has been derelict have involved millions. This was unaffordable even in good times, as repeated refusals by various politicians to fund any restoration have clearly demonstrated.
Planning Objections: The big issue is that all the suggested solutions have needed car parking to make them viable. The House is to far from Dollis Hill Tube to pick up enough traffic for (say) a restaurant. Nobody has managed a viable plan.
Ongoing funding: All the suggested schemes have failed to put forward a credible ongoing revenue model. Not having enough money to keep any solution would simply result in the House becoming derelict again, and the target of arson attacks as in the past.
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