Fed-up residents have come together to fight the latest planning applications on the staff college site.
One application seeks to increase the height of several blocks of flats near Broad Lane and Bagshot Road from 3 to 6 storeys. The 100 flats would be 1- 2- and 3-bedroom, but parking would be reduced to just one space per flat. Wimpey claim that they would not build 30 flats elsewhere on the site, so there would be no net increase in the total 730 dwellings proposed.
The other application is an outline application for 67 houses, additional to the 730 dwellings set to be built on the site, to be built on 1.7 hectares of the 19 hectares earmarked for public open space.
Cllr Chris Turrell commented: "Six storeys would make the height and mass of the flats very overbearing, and would be pretty devastating for the quality of life of nearby residents - and the occupants. The reduction in parking is totally unacceptable, and would lead to problems in the area. The applications fly in the face of the planning brief consulted upon with residents.
With the second application, for 67 extra houses, nearly 10 per cent of the open space would be taken, and the increase in numbers would be nearly 10 per cent. The developer claims this is previously developed land. This is not the case. Temporary permissions were granted in the 1990's for a temporary extension to the staff college. Permission was granted on the basis that the land would be returned to its former state when the temporary buildings were taken down."
Local residents are making their feelings known at what they see as an overstepping of the mark, and are combining to campaign against these applications. A campaign, Staff College: Residents Against Madness (SCRAM) has been launched: website www.bycar.com/SCRAM, e-mail scram@bycar.com.