I AM thrilled to learn that the appeal by Robert Hitchins to overturn the District Council's objections to the proposed monster housing estate in Lydney East has been rejected. The arguments of the Inspector Susan Holland and Gordon Blake the objector are nearly word for word the ones I used four years ago in the council chamber at a full meeting of the district council. Only four colleagues out of 40 present voted in my support though I know that others were unhappy about the size of the proposed estate.
The trouble was that we were not given time to consider seriously the 240 written objections and comments sent in during the "consultation" period by local people nor even those sent by the Government Office. Nor did the others bother to tell us that the application was totally at variance with Regional Planning Guidance of which they must all have had copies. This sensibly insisted that all large new housing developments should be located near big cities such as Gloucester and Cheltenham which had the infrastructure to cope with the influx of newcomers. In Lydney's case there is already permission for 950 new houses and to this would be added a further 750 houses which has now been put on hold waiting for the Hitchens next threatened appeal.
There are very few job vacancies in and around Lydney. So why is Lydney so attractive to the developer? Simple. Land here compared to Gloucester and Cheltenham is at a bargain basement level. Gloucester developers' profits would be far lower. Someone must have tipped off the Governments Office in Bristol because they blocked the approval. I discussed the situation with Diana Organ MP. She could be shrewd at times. She expected that the new homes would be bought by Brummies downsizing. I explained that plans for redesigning Lydney had been going on behind very closed doors for a very long time. The nature of the discussions had been leaked to me. The councillors and planners had very firm details. One officer was quoted as saying: "There will be a Mcdonald's in Lydney over my dead body".
Members of the Labour Group lobbied her to have the block removed and the result was that the application would be granted in stages provided more jobs were created. This seemed most unlikely but I went to check on the fat file in the planning department.
There on the top was an outline plan for a new business park the other side of the bypass with plans for some 30 buildings, four of them over 300 feet long and no maximum height. This seemed daft to me. Any businessman looking to expand would surely carry on into Wales where there were plenty of factory units already built and hefty grants available. I popped in to see Shaun, the Head of Planning. When I questioned him he gave me a long look. The proposal did however give an argument to permit a new estate to house the employees of this phantom site.
What we have now is a game of poker. On one side is the council's planning supremo, Cllr Terry Glastonbury, whom I believe has the best interest of Lydney at heart. On the other is a powerful developer who probably has more money for appeals than the council is spending on its glittering new foyer. The business park has faded into fantasyland since the block was removed. But 1500 new houses in Lydney including other developments means about 4000 new people including 1000 school children and 2000 cars. This little old town could be like living in Waterloo station in the rush hour. Do we need this? Do we want this?
Roger Horsfield, Bream.