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Velolife 2 (picture credit Andy Gray)Save Velolife crowdfunder halfway to £15k target inside 24 hours
A crowdfunding appeal by the owner of the Berkshire cycling café Velolife to raise funds to pay for legal fees to fight an injunction brought by the local council is halfway towards achieving its £15,000 target less than 24 hours after it was posted on Saturday afternoon, with more than 400 people having already donated around £8,000 at the time of writing.
As we reported on road.cc yesterday, while the local council, the Royal Borough of Windsor & Maidenhead, has retracted letters threatening legal action against local cycling clubs for planning ‘cyclists’ meets’ there, an injunction remains in force against the business itself.
> Council refuses to clarify ‘absurd’ Velolife cycle café situation
Cycling UK, which earlier this month met the council and British Cycling to discuss the situation which seemed to have been resolved only for the local authority to say that the injunction remains in force against Velolife, described the situation as “absurd.”
The charity said: “The council have applied to enforce an order, the terms of which it doesn’t understand and can’t clarify, which it expects Mr Goodwin to comply with”
Owner Lee Goodwin, who set up Velolife three years ago in premises formerly occupied by a pub that had gone of of business, said in his appeal posted on Gofundme:
“We opened Velolife in 2016 in an old Pub that had been closed for 18 months, bringing a new lease of life to a community facility that had been lost.
“We serve great organic coffee, using milk from a local farmer, amazing homemade cakes and awesome sourdough toasties.
“Being a bicycle cafe we also serve the local and broader cycling community which has allowed us to keep this great venue open.
We find ourselves in a very difficult situation. Although we are a Bicycle Cafe the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead Council (RBWM) has started legal proceedings against us in order to stop cyclist attending the cafe in groups or gatherings.
“Unfortunately RBWM has given no clarification as to what constitutes a group or gathering. Cycling Clubs are not allowed to use the Cafe before, during or after a ride according to the Council.
“If we are not allowed to have Cycling Clubs or gatherings of cyclists or groups of cyclists (undefined) then we will not be able to continue trading!
“We were hoping to get this resolved through conversation and common sense however this has not been possible and we are now left with no other option than to fight this in Court.
“The funds we raise will be used for legal fees and costs during this process. Any and all funds left over after the legal process will be donated to charity. 50% of any leftover funds will be donated to Cycling UK and the other 50% will be donated to Qhubeka.”
He also set out the wording of the injunction that the council is seeking against the business.
THE INJUNCTION
1. In relation to the Land known as The Old House, AKA The Snooty Fox, currently operating as Velolife, Warren Row, Reading, RG108QS:
(i) Shall not permit, encourage, facilitate, arrange or be party to any arrangement concerning the use of the land and building as a 'cycle meets' place, which would include the gathering of cyclists prior to departing on an organised ride; during organised rides or events or upon completion of organised rides or events.
(ii) Shall not permit, encourage, facilitate, arrange or enter into any agreement to allow the land to be used by congregating cyclists, including but not limited to cycle club members , arriving by any means, including car, van or cycle at any time of day or night.
Yesterday, when Goodwin announced via Velolife’s Twitter feed that the business was looking to crowdfund legal fees, Chris Boardman retweeted that post, saying there was “no reason” the injunction couldn’t simply be withdrawn.
Shouldn’t be necessary, just needs a couple of people to say this is daft, we got it wrong. @rbwm and @MrSimonDudley
there is no reason the prejudicial application for an injunction against cyclists meeting can’t simply be withdrawn. Instead.... https://t.co/Xz8A9aXgCI— Chris Boardman (@Chris_Boardman) August 24, 2019
Earlier on Saturday, Boardman posted his response to a tweet he had received from the leader of RBWM council, Simon Dudley.
Excellent Simon, thank you. So...
Cycling groups (like any other group) may meet at the cafe organised or otherwise and, provided they behave responsibly, neither they or the cafe will be penalised for this?
And the council is no longer seeking any kind of injunction? https://t.co/zR7bXokekC
— Chris Boardman (@Chris_Boardman) August 24, 2019
News of the café’s plight also reached the Vuelta, with Team Ineos rider Tao Geoghegan Hart this morning raising the issue on Twitter with law firm Leigh Day, whose marketing director, ex-Great Britain road and track rider David Standard, said they were “looking into it.”
Simon joined road.cc as news editor in 2009 and is now the site’s community editor, acting as a link between the team producing the content and our readers. A law and languages graduate, published translator and former retail analyst, he has reported on issues as diverse as cycling-related court cases, anti-doping investigations, the latest developments in the bike industry and the sport’s biggest races. Now back in London full-time after 15 years living in Oxford and Cambridge, he loves cycling along the Thames but misses having his former riding buddy, Elodie the miniature schnauzer, in the basket in front of him.
Latest Comments
- brooksby 5 min 13 sec ago
Problem is, too many people would still rather do the 45 minute drive and complain about it than do the 25 minute walk…
- mdavidford 20 min 46 sec ago
I think you're missing an opportunity to pack even more tech into it - add accelerometers that can detect whether they're pedalling or stepping....
- mdavidford 32 min 58 sec ago
Maybe one and the same thing though. They're not exactly short of populists over there, any more than we are. I'm sure if those people thought they...
- chrisonabike 45 min 27 sec ago
Thanks. I guess the question is "need". If the road is busy, it sounds like it is a desired route between places? In which case (given this an...
- mdavidford 53 min 24 sec ago
Don't know what you mean. I thought my suggestion was entirely practical.
- mdavidford 55 min 54 sec ago
...and a square of faux sheepskin for the back of your saddle.
- Rapha Nadal 1 hour 27 min ago
I'd buy a motorbike fo rthat kind of money!
Add new comment
16 comments
£15,236. Fantastic. Well done everyone.
Let's hope it is enough to challenge these dinosaurs and stop this nonsense once and for all.
Almost there £14,111, boosted by a couple of big donations; £500, £250 and £200. Ben Perry, Neil Barber and Anonymous, you're heroes. As is everyone who has donated.
Thats correct. The only complainant is the guy in Ivy Cottage. The guys silly as he will have to declare a conflict with VL when he eventually sells the house, if he ever does. I think now the council are trying to save face as they've cocked up, big time.
Hopefully velolife will be able to buy ivy cottage at a knock down price and turn it into a cyclists B&B. Should be plenty of business with the free advertising this legal wrangle has brought.
There is a Simon Dudley on the donate page - though clearly we can’t tell if it is him as I don’t think they do name checks to verify the names.
interesting though.
Two-thirds of the of the way there now: £10,278. Keep up the good work everyone, and if anyone has any influence with the media, more coverage would help I'm sure.
It's not the National Motor Museum though is it, it's privite car drivers on public roads.
I'm suprised that one of the local councillers hasn't somehow blamed this or the Lamborghini stunt on those hated cyclists.
We do speed around on those heavy and powerful pony killing bicycles after all.
Here’s what an actual problem looks like:
https://www.advertiserandtimes.co.uk/national-motor-museum-police
POLICE have spoken to the National Motor Museum in Beaulieu after footage emerged of car enthusiasts pulling wheelies, tyre-spinning and driving on the wrong side of the road as they left an event there.
Online video shows a near-miss as one souped-up vehicle loses control and swerves into the path of an oncoming motorist.
Another car heads off round a bend on the wrong side of the road and later a motorcyclist is caught pulling a wheelie on the footage – which shows scores of cyclists and walkers passing by amid clouds of tyre smoke.
etc
Quality timing by the police... braap, braapppp,,, tum de dum nothing to see here officer...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7paeB1wt9s&t=10m6s
Well, that was about as dull as watching an ITT.
Having been part of that crowd 15 years ago it's great to see things haven't really moved on. Always a few dickheads but most are just enthusiasts pouring money into their cars, same as some of us do with our bikes. I modified the hell out of a MK1 Mr2 in my youth, sourcing parts from all over the world and spending hundreds to eke out a few more BHP. I'd compare it to the WeightWeenies lot, it is quite an obsession. Think of it as football for engineers and geeks - particularly the Japanese mods scene as that inevitably ends up aligning with high tech, manga, anime, and so on.
I guess we will be all pleased to know that on Wednesday Simon Dudley has announced on his twitter:
'Many @RBWM residents use social media to communicate with us. So here we go, a dedicated support team to help make the Royal Borough a better place.'
I can think of more obvious ways to make RBWM a better place.
Take the money and use it to refurbish into a motorbiker cafe/pub. Ten seconds after the first hog arrives, belting out a 90-decibel roar, and the neighbours will be petitioning the council to apply to ASO to be a start town for the next Tour de France.
It's less complex than that. Politicians and planning busybodies don't cycle; they drive or are driven. Motorists hate cyclists. They'll give us a kicking whenever they can and they know there'll be no consequences. As far as most people are concerned, we are trash.
I reckon RBWM has the wrong kind of posh people. Like RBKC and the royal parks.
See, you have your green-organic-meusli-knit-your-own-yoghurt posh people, who are so pro-cycling they get used as a class-war stick to bash cyclists with by the tabloidy-populist school of petrolheads.
But you also have your pompous, car-fixated, give-me-easy-capital-gains-on-my-property-portfolio-or-give-me-death-or-at-least-give-poor-peoople-death, chelsea-tractor-driving, selfish-bastard type posh person.
Public bodies in certain high-status areas (anything associated with anything Royal) seem to be dominated by the latter type.
I think this whole situation is a product of a poorly negotiated compromise. Someone in authority got the hump with it being used for a purpose other than a pub (despite the council refusing an application to turn it into housing some years ago). The appeal planning inspector tried to reach a compromise of allowing the cafe to continue, but saved some ‘face’ for the council by not completely overturning the original refusal and keeping the cyclist meeting place clause. A clause that may seem to give the neighbour/council a resolution to their concerns, but would likely be completely unenforceable if it ever reached court. A hollow victory, but one that leaves the prospect of an unlimited fine hanging over the cafe owner.
The council should just cancel the notice. Given the trouble the owner has had, it’s unlikely he’s going to organise a 5am ride out. The council already have powers to deal with noisy neighbours should they need to.
This.
Warren Row is a small pretty village, and I suspect that the sounds of cyclists enjoying themselves, and a cafe doing great business has likely ruffled some feathers in millionaires row.
one wonders if they have actually tried to discuss matters with the cafe owner before ‘going all the way to the top!’
I appreciate that having your sleepy little village turned into a bike meet location might shatter your sleepy village atmosphere and put a downer on things, but it’s always best to try to resolve things by talking first.