Core Strategy Consultation - The Bournemouth Plan

URGENT CALL TO ALL FORUM MEMBERS

This Forum successfully collaborated in the Dorset wide campaign to stop Central Government forcing us to build 1,500 houses on our Green Belt (in the form of the South West Regional Spatial Strategy).

The new Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, Eric Pickles M.P., has returned 'decision making powers on housing and planning to the local councils.' attached letter - document and stresses the importance attached to Local Development Framework Core Strategies which will 'reflect local people’s aspirations and decisions on important issues such as climate change, housing and economic development.' However, the Government will also be offering councils 'real incentives to build new home' and as the last paragraph states, 'As part of their preparations or revision of local development documents, planning authorities should consider the desirability of new Green Belt or adjustment of an existing Green Belt boundary..'

So it is good news that local decisions will be made locally, but it puts the onus on everyone to make their views known and the need for Forum Members to support Forum and shape the future of our own area will become increasingly important.

Forum participated in the last consultation phase of the Core Strategy and we now have until 13th August, to comment on the Preferred Options stage.

The biggest issue affecting our area is the Castle Lane Relief Road, which has been in successive local plans for over 30 years and never been delivered for very good reasons:-

• It was originally planned as part of a wider network of roads across the conurbation, most of which plans have been scrapped, e.g. the eastern end at Riverside Avenue, etc. It must at the very least be considered in conjunction with the Kinson Relief Road as the extra traffic generated would cause total gridlock at Northbourne, Kinson and Parley Cross, spilling back to Castle Lane. These roads would also constitute a terrible blight on the homes, lives and wellbeing of the many Residents living close to the reservation through the Conservation Areas of Holdenhurst East and West and Throop and Muscliff, Townsend and urban Kinson and devastate the ecosystem along the Green Belt corridor and Kinson Common. They would generate huge amounts of extra traffic and remove land which could be used to form cycling and walking networks.
• Preparing for Climate Change. The Castle Lane Relief Road would need the junction at present planned in conjunction with a Park and Ride at Riverside. Part of this park and ride site is already within the marked flood plain as is part of the land on the western side of the A338. With climate change, the marked flood plain will obviously extend. It is totally inconsistent for the Council to claim if will take steps to mitigate climate change impacts, then encourage development in and along side the flood plain and in particular a road that would cause a vast increase in traffic and associated pollution.
• In particular, the section of the road between Muscliff Lane and the Northbourne roundabout, which would have to span the River Stour twice is totally within the flood plain (and Green belt) and the Council has a great deal of photographic evidence to prove this happens on a regular basis. Not only would this be prohibitively expensive (as it was even before this recession and certainly will be for the lifetime of the Core Strategy) but in complete contradiction to every policy on climate change, flood plains and protection of bio-diversity. Without this section to call this the Castle lane “Relief” Road is a total travesty, as all traffic using the road and all extra traffic that will be attracted to the road will only be able to exit back onto Castle Lane, which is already one of the busiest roads in Bournemouth.
• The last Government (in the final draft of the Spatial Strategy) and the present coalition have all but halted funding for road building, so this road would have to be funded solely by developer contributions. As with previous administrations and cross party agreement, this Council has made it clear it is opposed to the North Bournemouth urban extension, even planning to mount a legal challenge should the SW Regional spatial Strategy have been adopted. Without very high density housing and commercial development in the Green Belt, the Castle Lane relief Road is unaffordable, let alone the necessary associated other facilities for health, leisure, schools, etc., and also the Kinson Relief Road, which has little room for additional development. These roads will never be built in their entirety and must be removed from the Core Strategy and associated Plans.
• Any opening up of easy-to-develop, Green Belt land would attract developers away from the Town Centre and Brown Field sites, contrary to the visions and policies of the Town Centre Area Action Plan.
• If this dishonest and undeliverable plan is carried over into the Core Strategy it will make a farce of the aspirations of the vision and objectives in the Bournemouth Plan.

If we don’t get the Castle Lane Relief Road out of the Core Strategy, developers could claim to be wishing to build part of it and we will just end up with no 'relief,' just more development with no infrastructure and more gridlock on Castle Lane.

Please - act now. We have won the right to dictate our own future - let’s use it!

Go to www.bournemouth.gov.uk/CoreStrategy

You can use the consultation portal or just e-mail or post your comments to:

planning@bournemouth.gov.uk

Address:-

Planning and Transport

Core Strategy Consultation,

Town Hall Annexe, St Stephens Road, Bournemouth, Dorset BH2 6EA