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New homes plan is still causing anger
RESIDENTS have called for "more quality and less quantity" after pleas to re-write a controversial planning application fell on deaf ears.
RESIDENTS have called for "more quality and less quantity" after pleas to re-write a controversial planning application fell on deaf ears.In March, a decision on replacing Guild House, in Oundle Road, Woodston, with 102 homes was put on ice, giving the developer, GC Peterborough Limited, time to alter its scheme.
However, Peterborough City Council’s planning department has revealed that there have only been three minor changes to the application, including bin sites, the identification of a wildlife area and changes to the proposed road surface.
It means the developer is pressing ahead with plans to erect 102 homes, much to the consternation of many Woodston residents.
After the application was deferred by a city council planning and environmental protection committee on March 4, the matter is now due to be decided at the committee’s next meeting on July 15.
If approved, it would lead to the demolition of the ’60s office block, and the land would be redeveloped with a mix of four-storey flats and houses.
Swain Court resident Audrey Chalmers, who is a member of Phoenix Residents’ Association which is opposing the application, said: “The changes have done nothing to improve the quality of life for residents living in odd- numbered houses in Swain Court.
“They have not taken into account concerns about the number of homes on the site, or the lack of open space.
“We are not opposed to development on the site. We accept that Guild House will be pulled down. But we want to have a quality development, so people who live there will enjoy the quality of life that people in Woodston currently experience.”
Ward councillor Matthew Lee added: “It is going to be a problem for local residents and we have to try and convince the planning committee of that.
“It won’t be easy because the number of homes is permissible, so is not a reason for refusal.
“We still believe it is an awful lot to put on that site and it is a shame to lose the green space at the front.”
Prior to the March 4 planning meeting, the council received more than 70 letters objecting to the development, while residents in surrounding streets, including Flamborough Close, Jubilee Street, Oundle Road, Swain Court, The Squires and Wharf Road, organised a series of public meetings.
Before it was deferred, the application had been recommended for approval by planning officers.
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Saturday 11 February 2012
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