as ex-Bradys squat resident I think my main gripe would actually be the loss of the main concert room bar under the existing redevelopment proposals.
for some who may not have been inside (or even those who have) a reminder of what we did to clear out that room and get it up an running again
http://club.net-art.ws/bradys/ during the squat
when we were evicted 5/08/02 it eventually emerged that they did expect to have started redevelpment work that October but the partnership of Lambeth council, a Housing Association and a private partner fell apart with the consquence that we have since being paid for a couple of drunk security guards to be there 24/7. One story has it that the private partner was Rail Track but when they realised that any serious structural work to Bradys would be liable to bring down their bridge/railway in the process they pulled out. Another explantion is that they still haven't decided where air shaft from new tube station should come up behind (or through) Bradys.
The existing development plan asserts that the back end of Bradys including the main concert bar is of a different age to the Clock tower for which the building is primarily Grade 2 listed. Therefore they assert they are free to build a five story block of flats on the back end. This is actually untrue, the main back room is a typical turn of last century South London afternoon concert room with skylights in its ceiling. The floor above the main bar however is a later addition.
The obvious in their redevelopment is that it is clear that this proposed block of flats is not intended as social housing, being in an entirely unsuitable area and position for anybody with kids, but as money spinners for the development partners, being urban pads for the rich, 1 minutes form the tube and now seemingly 30 seconds from JO's latest nosh hole.
Brady's to me is the quintissential stuctural heart of Brixton. Brixton is a crossroads (and cross lines) place where people meet and exchange from all directions. Some of us like to be permanently stationed at crossroads, some of us just take a while to decide where we want to go next, this is the nature of Brixton. Brady's is physically part of that cross roads, one of my bedroom walls was the side of the bridge taking freight trains at night (the place wobbles rather than shakes) and I looked directly into the Eurostar from my breakfast table. The eight sided clock about sums up things.
Though diverse food culture is part of Brixton, and I think improving, with addition recently both of more Columbian restaurants and 66 Atlantic, I think broader arts and culture should be realised as essence of positive Brixton life.
The big South London pub with back room Concert hall is becoming a threatened species, we have lost at least five in the last two years in the immediate area, all to property speculators (and over priced beer). There is in fact no small to middling venue for live perfarmance in central Brixton any more. Yet the demand is there, witness the Messengers of God last weekend in the Albert (well done Pat, Richie, Will et al for their efforts there recently). A small venue is necessary both to encouraging emerging bands and letting us get live music and other arts before they hit the big time, the Acedemy etc.
In addition to the Concert Room, Bradys also had a multiplicaty of rooms above to store visiting artists! Somethign that is special problem London wide, and which made the potential while we were putting on open_digi digital arts there particularly great.
yet again Lambeth missed an opportunity for real social benefit, has lost a a heap of money in the process unecessarily, and will end yet more speckled with rich zombies with no commitment or social contact with the area.
laters
atty
, rather than concern ourselves for the possible reasons why we're living in a society where it takes the benevolence of somebody rich and famous (ok, and a little imagination and tenacity) for this to happen rather than being the norm.... 
