Parish council launches plan to combat huge housing development
CHALFONT St Peter parish council has hit out at controversial plans to build hundreds of new homes in the village.
Under government plans, 2,700 homes have to built in the Chiltern District over the next 17 years.
Because of this Chiltern District Council (CDC) has decided that 720 of these have to be installed in Chalfont St Peter, meaning that 406 of these could be built on the historic Holy Cross Convent School site which closed its doors in 2006.
As well as this, more than 200 dwellings are designated for the vacant Newland Park site, 28 in Nortoft Road, 95 in the Austenwood and Gold Hill area and 73 in Chalfont St Peter North.
If the plans go ahead, work could begin as early as next year, and this has led to concern in the village that the area's infrastructure will not be able to cope.
The views of Chalfont St Peter residents will not be recognised by CDC because they are not considered as 'stakeholders', but to combat this a working group has been set up by the parish council on behalf of residents to respond officially to the plans.
Richard Allen, chairman of the parish council, said: "Of course, with a shortage of housing for younger people, we are not opposed to the kind of sustainable affordable housing proposals that have been put forward in other areas.
"However, I am very concerned that residents do not seem to realise the either the scale of what is being proposed or the fact that housing densities will be applied on the basis that we are a town.
"Chalfont St Peter residents have not had a real opportunity to comment on plans that are already a long way towards ratification in the spring of 2010. The high density of housing proposed could put huge environmental pressures on the village and may even change it beyond all recognition, not necessarily for the better."
The working group is creating a village design statement and plan to take in all aspects of the proposed development, including education, traffic, water and drainage.
John Hatton, leader of the group, said: "We need to ensure that any development is done in sympathy with the existing village character and should take into consideration all aspects of living here including the basic everyday utilities. Additionally any new building should to be in keeping with the character of the village and must not detract from the excellent environment that we have now. It would be a shame if we have to concrete over the Holy Cross playing fields and lose ancient trees."
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People have to live somewhere and the youth of the village are being squeezed out by high property prices and lack of space. I have seen neighbours' children having to move to Slough, Watford or Uxbridge because there are no affordable homes in Chalfont Saint Peter. Schools are desperate for intake and the last two years reception classes have had less than half capacity, in some schools.
We all understand that more housing is needed but residents should be consulted as it does affect their standard of life and the cost of their homes. Nobody should lose money directly as a result of other peoples plans and at least should be consulted.
There is a baby boom now so schools will be under pressure in the near future anyway regards of increased housing.
Whatever the plans they do need to be in keeping with the character of the area and most importantly do need to ensure that the infrastructure can support them. Most planning of increased numbers over the last 10 years has taken no account of the ability of the infrastructure to support the increase in housing - water supply, roads (poor at present let alone with increased numbers) as well as schools and other utilities.
The increased numbers are spread over 17 years, so there is no excuse for not consulting residents and doing the best to ensure that increases are managed properly and expectations are set accordingly.
Why have the residents of Chiltern District council been informed of these plans?? The first I heard of this development was when I received a notification leaflet via my parrish council. Whilst I realise that there is a grave need for housing, 720 houses in Chalfont St Peter sounds an awful lot, such a boom is not compatible with the present resources of this village and perhaps the parrish council should focus on having this number reduced to say 300 homes. This village simply cannot absorb 720 houses, where will extra 720 cars on our road go??? Of course we could become like Uxbridge!!!!
sorry Ruxana Nasser meant to say 'why we have NOT been informed by chiltern district council??
Once again our lovely village is the target of mindless vandalism. I realise new homes have to be built somewhere, but to indiscriminately dump a plan of 800+ houses on a small village like Chalfont St Peter which is already busting at the seams to cope, is typical of the kind of apathy and contempt that this government has for the South East.
Over the years Chalfont St Peter has endured the bulldozing of precious historic timber framed houses to make way for council housing, the erection of the hideous precinct where a historic town centre once stood and now, not satisfied with making a mess of our economy, Gordon Brown is going to finish the hatchet job on Chalfont St Peter with intensive low cost housing all over our green fields.
The fallout will be unbearable for the community, with no plans to build more schools, our hospitals on the closure list and road traffic already at breaking point, our infrastructure will collapse.
If they must build so many houses, Chiltern District Council need to spread the housing quota more sensitively, this is unworkable, undemocratic and stinks of laziness.
I think Mr.Donaldson is displaying strong signs of "NIMBY'ism" in his post. The simple fact of the matter is that Social Housing needs to be built to cater for our growing populace. We have seen the wonderful benefits immigration can bring to this country, so why shouldn't these people be given a home here? It's the least that we can offer them. I might also remind Mr.Donaldson that we have large swathes of spare land in the South East, and as a richer area, these people need to be housed here. We can, after all, afford it. It's no good putting them up in the North and expecting them to commute to London now, is it? Some of you need to stop living in the past and celebrate the diversity and enrichment multiculturalism and immigration brings. Socialism is the only way that this can be achieved! Vote Labour!
I went to the Saturday morning meeting at the school hall and whilst I found it informative and interesting, I thought the local water company plan to make the Holy Cross site a sewage processing plant quite appalling.