A united front is being organised to oppose any attempt to reconstruct The Spires shopping centre with blocks of flats which it is feared could tower above the town centre and dominate the High Barnet skyline.

Two of the town’s largest representative groups – Barnet Residents Association and Barnet Society – have agreed to combine forces to co-ordinate a community-led response ready for when developers BYM present revised proposals in late August or early September.

Barnet Council officials and leading councillors are being asked to agree to open discussions with local organisations so that they can pass on the concerns of residents and shoppers about BYM’s proposals.

Councillor Paul Edwards, who represents High Barnet, is calling for a pro-active intervention by his fellow councillors and officials.

He is anxious to ensure that the town’s representative groups have a say at the planning stage in any scheme to reconstruct The Spires and he wants to see whether a consensus can be achieved on future redevelopment of the shopping centre.

Councillor Edwards’ initiative follows the annual meeting of the Barnet Society at which the BRA expressed its support for a joint approach to safeguard the distinctive character of High Barnet.

Robin Bishop (left) who leads for the society on planning issues, and Gordon Massey, who is the BRA’s lead on planning, explained their objections and answered questions.

Mr Massey said had been shocked by the disregard which BYM had shown towards the need to respect the character of a historic market town.

If the existing shopping centre was replaced with blocks of flats of five to six storeys in height, they would tower above the town centre.

This would negate all the care that had been taken over the decades to ensure that new buildings did not exceed four storeys in order to leave the tower of the parish church as the defining feature of High Barnet.

The priority now was for the town to get on the front foot to ensure that local organisations had an input into the planning process.

Mr Bishop hopes that there can be early contact with the council officials who have been holding discussions with BYM on redeveloping The Spires.

Mr Massey says the council also needs to be reminded that it has two roles. As well as being the planning authority, the council has a wider responsibility as the freeholder of The Spires complex.

Any fundamental changes to the role and layout of the shopping centre would need to be approved by the council and therefore councillors have a duty to communicate with the town.

“As the freeholder, the council has an overriding responsibility to the community and should consider any proposals to change the shopping centre and should see what might be acceptable for the site.”

In his presentation to the annual meeting, Mr Massey explained that when The Spires was built in the 1980s it was kept low rise and designed with tiled, pitched roofs to remain unintrusive, and reflect the surroundings.

He accepted that The Spires had been struggling, but BYM’s plan to redevelop the shopping centre was all about packing in 250 to 300 flats, and with the shops as an afterthought.

Most of the flats would have one or two bedrooms, built to minimum space standards, and the majority would be single aspect with windows on one side only.

Three blocks would be built either side of a new pedestrian thoroughfare from the High Street to Stapylton Road.

Instead of the existing covered entrances to the shops, walkways, and the clocktower there would be “ugly flat roofed rectangular blocks”. The new thoroughfare would be in shadow, offer no cover and risk becoming a wind tunnel.

In addition to houses and flats on the former market site in Chipping Close, and there would be more flats in the service area.

All that would remain of The Spires would be the High Street main entrance, Waitrose supermarket, and a car park which would be limited to the ground floor and basement so that two upper floors could be released for conversion into flats.

Mr Massey feared the reduction in the number of car park spaces from 417 to 150 would be “a disaster” for traders.

“The land on which The Spires was built included a large car park which served the town, and it is the responsibility of BYM as leaseholders to continue to provide this parking for short-term shoppers.

“The terms of the lease require Barnet Council as the freeholder to approve any proposed changes, and it is surely a prime consideration for councillors to ensure that alterations to The Spires are in the interest of the community, including residents who live close by.

“Our fear is that in the coming weeks BYM will come forward with proposals not dissimilar from those we have already seen so we need to get on the front foot if we are to ensure any new plan for The Spires meets the community’s aspirations.”