Object

Representation ID: 60207

Received: 29/07/2013

Respondent: Margaret Hamilton

The plan talks about the need to distribute housing across the entire District, but then in fact does not do this!

The land between Warwick, Whitnash and Bishop's Tachbrook is rural and agricultural and present policies respect this.

Building on it would merge our built-up areas, making them a single suburban sprawl. The green land is as important as the Green Belt, arguably more so, to the north of Leamington and Warwick, and should be safeguarded just as strongly.

Alternatives:

A starting point should be that EVERY ward has the same level of housing growth during the plan, i.e. A 20% across the board increase.

* Most housing will be again concentrated within Warwick and parts of Leamington Spa, with very little in the large villages or in Kenilworth.

* The housing growth of 4000 units adjacent to Warwick will lead to a 40% increase in the town's population which unsustainable in quality of life, transport, air quality, employment, schools, and health infrastructure. And will destroy the character of the town totally, and therefore damage the local economy which depends upon it.

* The inexplicable lack of housing growth in and around Kenilworth is most odd given that the job growth is likely to be around the University and Coventry Airport -Warwickshire Gateway- and the town already has a lot of facilities.

* The greenbelt should in principle be protected, but not where this protection will cause massive detriment to the life and health of the inhabitants of Warwick.

* 1000 houses over 15 years in the villages is clearly inadequate to meet their housing needs or the lack of affordable housing, this is only 67 houses per year spread across a wide geographical area. This is curious, as it also points out the lack of affordable rural housing but then basically ignores any provision for it!

* Suggest as a minimum 3500 of the 12800 houses in the plan be developed in the village areas spread evenly across the district. Conceivably this number could be much higher, built on the existing village fringes.

* The infrastructure is much more likely to be able to cope with 6-10 new houses per rural ward per annum than the huge estates proposed adjacent to Warwick.

* This provision WOULD meet some of the need for affordable rural housing projected, at 67 per year if 33% was "affordable".

* Suggest three areas which have been overlooked for large scale housing provision are Bagington, Radford Semile and Lapworth. All are ripe for large scale "garden suburbs", supported by business parks. This would support and make more viable their existing shops and schools.

* Suggest that at least an additional 1000 to 1500 houses are considered for each ward, and therefore the significant benefits of population growth are met, coupled with local affordable housing and retail provision

* Notes they both have existing primary schools, and good proximity to public transport and roads, and Lapworth has a commuter railway station.

* Also the opportunity in Lapworth to build a business park to tap into the proximity to Solihull and at Radford Semile to build a business park dedicated to engineering to tap into the expertise and supply chain associated with Ricardos. Warwick Gateway would be supported by new housing and infrastructure, too.

* This in turn would mean much smaller developments around Warwick.