BASE HEADER

I am writing to notify my objections to your plan to build in the green belt north of Leamington.
Building up to Old Milverton Lane is not acceptable. This is a rural lane leading to a small village. Your claim at last week's meeting that Old Milverton can remain a rural settlement cannot possibly be upheld. The road will become a suburban one, and proposals for a main road to the North of the village crossing the Avon valley would create more traffic and traffic noise

Referring to Section PO13:-This area is extensively used for recreational walking and cycling by residents of a wide area of North Leamington. These planning proposals would effectively destroy the rural nature of this area and lead to loss of amenity.

Referring to Section PO14:- The conversion of the A452 road to Kenilworth to dual carriageway would do nothing to alleviate congestion between that town and L/Spa as was comprehensively proved back in the 1980s when the proposal was thrown out by the Minister. More traffic would be produced and tail backs would be as great if not greater than now. Building roads creates more traffic as is shown time after time.

Referring to Section PO15:- The Avon Valley is a notified corridor of Special Wildlife Importance. Building a new road across the valley North of Old Milverton would destroy a large undisturbed section of this wildlife corridor with detrimental effects on biodiversity. Chopping up wildlife areas into little chunks runs counter to all the researched evidence and flies in the face of the Warwickshire Wildlife Trust's endeavours to create Living Landscapes -- ie extensive areas of one habitat type, which all research shows is needed to prevent further loss of our diminishing biodiversity.

Ref. Section PO13:- These proposals for new and upgraded roads are not consistent with reducing carbon emissions. A serious investment in safe, continuous cycleways between towns, and between housing and work sites would meet the criteria you set out.
Finally two points:- There was a large brownfield site available in a convenient location near the town centre and with shops and transport links available nearby,(the old Ford site) You chose to give it over to a supermarket which is not needed (there are two very close). If you had built houses there it could have accommodated many of the houses needed and avoided building on green belt land. This is disgraceful short term expediency.
Secondly the government requires extremely good reasons for building on greenbelt land; bearing in mind my above comments, I do not think your plan will meet the criteria. You are trying to turn L/Spa into a town ringed by dual carriageway roads like so many others. Let's keep its unique character. I reject this vision for Leamington's future.