CASE Notice Board 2001

18th December 2001

Green Paper on Planning

The Government have recently issued a green paper on planning which proposes that the rights of individuals and groups such as CASE to object to the principle major strategic developments should be extinguished. If you wish to red the paper see the Government's web site.

16th December 2001

The Planning Applications

We understand from NHDC that they are still considering the applications to build 5,000 or 3600 dwellings in the greenbelt to the West of Stevenage. NHDC have informed us that it is unlikely that they will be in a position to arrive at a decision before the end of January 2002. If we get any further news we will post it on this site as early as possible.

The Urban Capacity Study/County Structure Plan

In the meantime the updating of the County Structure Plan continues. With regard too housing the results of the Housing Capacity Study are vital. The Study strongly suggests that Hertfordshire can meet its housing needs up to and beyond 2016 without having to rely on large strategic greenfield sites such as West of Stevenage.

Needless to say, however, the proponents of the West of Stevenage Development are fighting a furious rearguard action. In particular they are trying to convince people that the alternative proposals to make better use of urban sites will lead to nothing but town cramming with every available piece of urban green land being built on. These arguments are based on a total distortion of what the Urban Capacity Study found. In order to clarify the position Tim Akeroyd of CASE recently wrote to the Comet as follows:

"Mrs A Levy wrote to you last week saying that she had read with growing disbelief the list of potential sites for housing to be built in Stevenage and North Herts and had come to the conclusion that county councillors and surveyors had gone stark raving mad.

The reality is far different. Mrs Levy and other of your readers who wrote with similar concerns have been the innocent victims of a cynical propaganda campaign. Those reading the comments of certain local politicians can be forgiven for believing that there is in existence a proposal to destroy businesses, grab people’s homes and gardens and build on every inch of green in our towns. Those who have had the time and opportunity to actually read the relevant reports will know that the reality is very different.

The county council has (as they are required to do by the Government) conducted an Urban Capacity Survey. The purpose of this exercise is to help assess the amount of dwellings that can be satisfactorily built in the County’s urban areas. The results will be used to make decisions on how Hertfordshire’s future housing needs should be met. In conducting the study the consultants looked at a huge number of potential sites. The large majority of these were discounted immediately as being unsuitable or unacceptable. Many of those sites that were excluded from the outset appear to be the ones causing so much concern. The remainder are merely identified as potential or possible sites.

The exercise went far further than merely looking at green spaces. For example, it included looking at every shop in the locality and seeing how many had floors above them that were empty. A view was then taken as to how many of these empty spaces would be suitable for converting into flats and how many of those suitable would be likely to be converted during the next 15 years. A further exercise was carried out to see whether there was surplus employment space in the area that could be better used for housing. It will come as no surprise to those who can see the large number of acres of derelict industrial areas in Stevenage that the Urban Capacity Study concluded that a substantial number of houses could over the next 15 years be built in Stevenage on these sites. Similar exercises have been done to see whether the numerous acres taken up by car parks cannot be better used. On certain sites it is perfectly possible to have parking at ground level and sub ground level and a mixed development including housing at a higher level. The study looks at numerous other possibilities such as how many large Victorian or Edwardian houses are likely to come on the market that are suitable for conversion into flats (very few in Stevenage) and so on.

At every stage a view has been taken as to how many of these potential sites will be likely to become available for housing within the next 15 years and the figures have been discounted to reflect the fact that very many potential sites will not in fact become available. There is, accordingly, no question of properties being compulsorily purchased or community groups being thrown out without specific consultation as some of your readers fear. When all these discounted possibilities are added together it is clear that there is a tremendous potential to meet our housing needs without having to develop large amounts of our green belt and green fields.

There are real benefits to this approach. By making better use of available opportunities life can be brought back to the centre of our towns. It is an opportunity for urban renaissance and the need to build huge developments in our green belt can be avoided. It is a real win/win situation. Of course, we need to have a debate as to how best to meet our housing needs, but the present disinformation campaign by those supporting the proposed development west of Stevenage shows clearly that they do not believe they can win the debate without cynically misrepresenting the true position. They should be ashamed of themselves.

TIM AKEROYD

Chairman, Campaign Against Stevenage Expansion"

HAPPY CHRISTMAS

Lastly we wish all our supporters a Merry Christmas and a happy new year. With a little luck by this time next year we will be able to celebrate the fact that the unwanted and unnecessary proposals to concrete over large amounts of our green belt have been finally defeated.

1st November 2001

CASE have been informed by North Herts District Council that they received some 6,000 objections to the application for planning permission for 5,000 dwellings to the West of the A1(M) at Stevenage. They also receive a total of three submissions in support of the application. Stevenage Borough Council have yet to reveal the number of CASE objections they received. However from the number of CASE objection forms we delivered to them by hand we know the figure must be well in excess of 1,000. This means that over 7,000 objections have been lodged in all as against some three in support. This represents a devastating indictment of this attempt to needlessly concrete over such a large amount of our greenbelt.

CASE has now lodged its formal objections to the Application to build 3,600 dwellings. For a copy of these objections click here.

13th October 2001

Urban Capacity Study Results

Herts County Council have now completed its long awaited urban capacity study covering the whole County. The result is that a further potential brownfield and urban sites sufficient for 32,000 additional dwellings have been identified. For a summary of the UCS click here.

This survey establishes clearly what CASE have been saying for five years, namely that it is totally unnecessary to concrete over large amounts of greenbelt to meet Hertfordshire's foreseeable housing needs.

In the light of these findings Hertfordshire County Council are starting the process of amending the County Structure Plan. A consultation document has been prepared setting out the results of the urban capacity study and seeking public comment on the implications. One of the issues expressly raised is whether, in the light of these findings, the proposal to build 10,000 houses to the West of Stevenage should be removed from the County Structure Plan. To see a draft of this consultation document click here.

Tim Akeroyd, the Chairman of CASE commented that:

"This is wonderful news. It is now clear that Hertfordshire does not have to destroy its countryside to meet its housing requirements. If we can persuade the County Council to remove from the Structure Plan the proposal to build this unnecessary and damaging greenfield development, we will have won our long fought battle to save the greenbelt to the West of Stevenage".

CASE will be regularly reporting on the progress of this important process and will let CASE supporters know how they can help.

The Urban Capacity Study is also extremely relevant to the Developers' application for planning permission to build the first 5,000 dwellings in the greenbelt to the West of Stevenage. CASE have lodged with North Herts District Council and Stevenage Borough Council a Supplementary Objection to take these new figures into account. To see these Supplementary Objections please click here.

26th September 2001

The CPRE are running a seminar entitled "How to Survive a Public Inquiry". It will take place on 29th November 2001 at Knebworth Villiage Hall. If you are interested in attending, click here for details and application form.

23rd September 2001

The time for objections to the Developers' Application to build 5,000 dwellings in the greenbelt to the West of the A1(M) has now expired.

There has been a massive response to CASE's "Object Now" campaign. The feed back we are getting from North Hertfordshire District Council is that by the deadline some 5,000 objections have been made. CASE have lodged detailed objections running to over 50 pages.

This Campaign has been a great success and establishes yet again the fact that large developments in the greenbelt or, indeed, on any greenfield site are not acceptable to the public. Many thanks to all who have helped with the campaign and all of you who have lodged objections.

North Hertfordshire District Council and Stevenage Borough Council have to now consider both the Application itself and the Objections. A decision is due on or before 19th November 2001.

CASE understand that the County Council's long awaited Urban Capacity Study will be published in early October. This is a vital document. It will establish whether the Developers' claim that there is no alternative way of meeting Hertfordshire's housing requirements other than a large greenfield development is true.

15th September 2001

Further progress report

Today we had the last of our Hitchin stalls. We obtained a total of 439 objections. This means that at the Hitchin and Stevenage stalls alone we have got well over 2,000 objection forms completed. In addition numerous other objection forms have been submitted to NHDC and SBC in by post and by e mail.

Many thanks to our numerous supporters.

The time for putting in objections expires on Friday 21st September 2001. If you have not already do so please OBJECT NOW

8th September 2001

Developers make 2nd application for Planning Permission

The Developers have recently made a second application to North Herts District Council and Stevenage Borough Council. The application is for 3,600 dwellings. This application is an alternative to and is not an addition to the application for 5,000 dwellings made in July. The reasons for the second application are largely technical and are intended by the Developers to bring their proposals more closely in line with the Hertfordshire County Structure Plan.

CASE do not intend to organise mass objections to this application as it largely duplicates the one already made. We consider that the objections of those who have opposed the original application are equally valid in respect of this second application and will ask the local authorities to treat them accordingly.

5th September 2001

Developers accuse CASE of "scare-mongering"

The West Stevenage Consortium today launched an extraordinary and ill conceived attack on CASE. In a press release issued today by it's spin doctor Iain Villacott, the Consortium accused CASE of trying to mislead the public over its proposals for a new development to the west of Stevenage. In particular we are accused of trying to mislead the public by

(a) the positioning of one of our our protest signs by the A(1)M outside the immediate development area;

(b) publishing on our web site not only copies of the developers own masterplan and site location plan, but also a map showing the entire area the County Council identified as the area the greenbelt had to be rolled back so as to accommodate a development of up to 10,000 dwellings;

(c) referring to the fact that the County Structure Plan envisages the possibility of the development expanding to 10,000 dwellings

(d) pointing out the traffic problems this development will create.

Tim Akeroyd, the Chairman of CASE responded:

"This misconceived attack shows that the developers are thoroughly rattled by the success of the CASE campaign to oppose the granting of planning permission for the first 5,000 dwellings. It is absurd to suggest that CASE have been trying to mislead the public. Those who have visited our web site will see that time and time again we link our supporters to the developers very own web site so that people can make up their own mind about the merits of the proposal.

The problem the developers face is that there are many questions to be asked about the sustainability of the development which the developers seem unwilling or unable to answer. CASE continue to believe that the developers proposals to build a large and unnecessary development in our green belt is wrong in both principle and detail. We will continue to lead the opposition to this application."

1st September 2001

PROGRESS REPORT

The OBJECT NOW campaign is going extremely well. We collected a further 392 objections at the stall we ran at Hitchin today.

This means that to date the CASE stalls at Hitchin and Stevenage have obtained a total of 1,640 objections. In addition hundreds of objections have been made through this web site and cards delivered to households in Hitchin and Stevenage are now being sent in in large numbers. Since the developers applied for planning permission we have collected donations totaling £1,103.63. During this period our Web site has had well over 1,000 "hits". Well done everyone who has contributed to this excellent effort and many thanks to everyone who has supported this campaign.

If we are going to defeat this application to build the first 5,000 dwellings in our Green Belt we need to get as many objections lodged as possible. If you have not yet done so, please do it now! If you have objected please get as many others to do so as possible.

THE LAST DATE TO OBJECT IS 21st SEPTEMBER 2001

OBJECT NOW Campaign

It is almost exactly a year ago that we re-launched our website. It has been a useful campaigning tool and in the last year has received over 4,000 "hits". Many thanks to FOE for persuading us that it really was worth the effort to set up and run.

The CASE web site is now of particular assistance in our fight to oppose the application to build the first 5,000 houses on this greenbelt site.

Objection forms can now be sent to NHDC direct from this web site. We are keen that as many people as possible make use of this facility. It would help us greatly if you would e-mail as many people as possible and let them know what is happening. We suggest the following message be sent:

"I am sure you have all heard that the developers have applied for planning permission to build the first 5,000 houses in the greenbelt west of Stevenage. The Campaign against Stevenage Expansion - CASE have launched a OBJECT NOW campaign. The application can, and CASE believe, will be defeated. However CASE urgently need as many objections as possible to be lodged to the application. The Developers have poured millions of pounds into this application. On our side we have a combination of bloody-minded determination to prevent this unnecessary and damaging greenbelt development and sheer weight of numbers.

If you have not lodged your objection please do so. It can be easily done through the CASE web site: www.case.org.uk All you have to do is fill in your name and address and press "submit". It only takes a minute. Every objection counts and will help us to be in a strong position to resist this application.

Please pass this message on to anyone you think would like to help and ask them to do the same."

12th August 2001

CASE Market Stall

Despite the fact that Hitchin was very quiet as a result of the holiday season, yesterday's Market Stall was a great success. We obtained over 500 completed objection forms and hundreds of forms were taken for delivery to homes in villages and towns beyond our normal distribution area. In addition we raised much-needed funds of over £550. Many thanks to all who attended the stall. Particularly those who gave so generously.

If you were unable to see us yesterday we will be in Stevenage Old Town on Saturday 25th August and back in the Market Place Hitchin on Saturday 1st September. In addition we have arranged for a major house to house distribution of objection forms in Hitchin, the western part of Stevenage and surrounding villages. It will take a few weeks to complete. If you have not received a form by the end of the month or need more copies please e-mail us.

10th August 2001

CASE market stalls

CASE will have a stall in the Market Place Hitchin on Saturday 11th August and on Saturday 1st September. We will also be in the High Street Stevenage Old Town on Saturday 25th August. We will be asking people to sign our forms objecting to the application to build the first 5,000 houses west of Stevenage and will be available to answer any questions. Please come along if you can!

Further NHDC Public Meetings

NHDC have scheduled two further public meetings to explain the Planning Application. They are at Knebworth Village Hall on August 29 at 7.30 pm and at Hitchin British Schools, Queen Street on September 4 also at 7.30 pm. If you were unable to make the earlier meetings you will find these meetings very informative.

5th August 2001

Click here for the objection form in respect of the application for planning permission for the first 5000 houses.

4th August 2001

Public Meetings

NHDC have arranged a series of meetings to explain to the Public the applications for planning Permission. These will take place at Little Wymondley School on Monday August 6th, St Ippolyts School on Tuesday 7th and at Codicote Memorial Hall on Wednesday 8th. All at 7.30. There are further meetings at the end of the month and early September.

Members of CASE will be present at all these meetings with objection forms and advice as to how to lodge an objection.

Do attend if you can!

28th July 2001

Planning permission applied for
The developers have now made their formal application for planning permission to build 5000 dwellings to the west of the A1(M) at Stevenage. CASE are giving the application urgent consideration and hope to be in a position to provide a standard form of rejection within the next week or so. Objections must be lodged with either Stevenage Borough Council or North Herts District Council by not later than 7th September 2001.

If you wish to look at the planning application and the principle documents in support such as the Environmental Impact Assessment, these can be found at www.weststevenage.co.uk

If we are going to defeat this proposal, it is essential that as many people as possible lodge their objections by 7th September. Please regularly come back to this site and we will keep you fully informed as to what action objectors should take.

We need everyone's help!

21st July 2001

Developers due to apply for planning permission for first 5,000 houses
CASE has learned that on Tuesday 24th July the developers will be formally lodging their application for planning permission for the first 5,000 houses they want to build west of Stevenage. They are intending to have this co-inside with a massive press campaign to try to convince the media and local people that this development is highly desirable.

CASE will be organising a response to the planning application and to the publicity. We badly need the help of as many people as possible if we are going to see off this very real threat. Over the coming weeks we will be launching our own press campaign and will be asking as many of our supporters as possible to fill in objection forms which CASE will be preparing. We will ensure that a copy of this form will be lodged in a promenant place on this site so that it can be filled in on-line and submitted to North Herts District Council.

West of Stevenage Developers suffer court defeat
On 20th July the developers who had challenged in court the decision of North Herts District Council to withdraw the local district plan lost their action. See "Press Articles" for North Herts Press Release.

Tim Akeroyd, Chairman of CASE, says:

"this is a brilliant victory for North Herts and all those who oppose the unnecessary and destructive development West of Stevenage. It could not have come at a better time as it will give great heart to all fighting the application for planning permission that the developers are about to launch".

Carry the Can
'Rock 'n' roots' group Carry the Can, who are CASE supporters, have included their protest song "West of Stevenage" on their latest CD. They're launching it on the 30th and 31st of August and 1st September at the Market Theatre, 6A Sunstreet, Hitchin. For futher details, contact them at www.carrythecan.org.uk.

7th July 2001

Stevenage Local Plan
This is a reminder that the time for lodging objections to the second draft of the Stevenage District plan expires on Monday 13th August 2001. CASE will be putting in detailed objections to the amendments, but it would help if as many individuals as possible put in their own objections. If you need any help with your objections to the second draft of the Stevenage District plan, please contact Tim.

1st July 2001

The expected application by Persimmon and Homes has yet to materialise and the meeting that had been arranged at North Herts District Council to consider the applications have been adjourned. However, this does not mean that this threat has gone away and CASE expect an application for planning permission to be made in the near future. As soon as we receive any firm information, we will notify all our supporters and tell them how they can help successfully resist this latest attempt to force through the development.

30th April 2001

URGENT NEWS!

Developers to apply for planning permission
CASE have learned that in the immediate run up to the general election when everybody is distracted by this, the developers intend to apply for planning permission for 5000 houses.

Until such time as the planning permission's received by North Herts District Council and Stevenage Borough Council, there is little that CASE supporters can do about this. However, as soon as planning permission is received, it is essential that as many CASE supporters as possible lodge objections to the planning application with both Councils.

CASE will be launching an extensive publicity campaign and will provide its supporters with specimen objection forms to be completed and lodged. We intend to make these available to download from this web site, and we'll be sending copies to those supporters on our database. If you're not on our database and would like to be, please fill in the response form.

If we are going to prevent this development from going ahead, it is vital that there is a truly massive response. Please help us in this respect and ensure that others realise the urgency and importance that we respond to this threat to our greenbelt.

15th April 2001

No Bluebell walk this year

Normally at this time of year, CASE organise a walk through the Langley Valley so that supporters can see the glorious bluebell woods in full bloom. Unfortunately, due to the foot and mouth restrictions none of the footpaths nor tracks are open. We will try to organise another walk in the summer once the restrictions have been lifted.

17 March 2001

The Langley Valley has not been immune to the heavy winter rain that has effected so much of the English Countryside this year. The watercourse that flows through the valley has been unable to cope with the sheer quantity of water and in numerous places has burst its banks.

Those who use the B656 will have seen the road flooded next to the Royal Oak. The Almshoebury Swallowhole that is normally a small pond has been a vast lake covering many acres. And most of the low-lying fields have been underwater or saturated.

The Langley Valley in flood

The first stage of the major development to the west of the A1(M) at Stevenage is planned to be on the plateau above the Langley Valley. Developments of the size proposed always have profound effect on run-off. At present little or no thought appears to have been given by either the developers or Stevenage Borough Council (whose land will not be flooded) as to what the impact of a huge development above the Valley will be or as to how to prevent future flooding. If this ill thought out development is allowed to proceed further flooding will be inevitable and it will probably be Hitchin, which is down stream that will pay the price for such folly.

In the event that the second phase of the proposed development was to be allowed to proceed much of the development would be built at the floor of the valley where flooding already regularly takes place. Not doubt, if this development is allowed to proceed, developers and planners will ignore this problem and yet another flood plain development will be built. Let us all hope that common sense will prevail and that the continuing attempts by the developers and Stevenage Borough Council to bulldozer unnecessary and harmful proposed development through the planning system will be abandoned.

12th February 2001

Help Needed

CASE are always in need of volunteers to help with the campaign. If you would like to help please e mail me at: tim_akeroyd@lineone.net. In particular we are at present looking for someone who will act as our Press Officer. This involves making sure that press releases etc are distributed to all local papers, TV and radio. It also involves liasing with the press to arrange interviews etc.

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