The UK’s Bhaktivedanta Manor can be very overcrowded sometimes; it’s not just on festival days that people have to sit and eat in the corridors. The residents of Bhaktivedanta Manor are pleased to say that Hertsmere Borough Council is putting forward proposals that could help to expand their facilities in future.

The Council has produced a report, called a Planning Brief, which accepts additional space is required to reduce the stress on the Manor building. It sets out a number of options for introducing a Haveli building on the site.

As Councillor Harvey Cohen, portfolio holder for planning at the Council, has said:

“Bhaktivedanta Manor is an important site for ISKCON and the borough of Hertsmere with huge cultural, religious and historical significance. This planning brief aims to forge a path forward that will meet the needs of ISKCON, residents of Letchmore Heath and the wider community of Hertsmere, and ensure that all future development on the estate is sustainable and suitable.”

The Council’s Planning Brief is not a planning application. It deals with the principles of development rather than the specifics. But it should set a framework within which ISKCON can expand the facilities and reduce overcrowding in a sustainable way.

A public consultation on the proposals will now run from 9 July until 10 September.