Testun llawn:
N.B. The following response is the result of Working Party discussions between Rowington Parish Councillors and is therefore subject to formal resolution at the next Council Meeting on February 13th 2014.
1. The results of the recent Parish Design Statement Survey confirmed that a significant number of respondents identified the need for smaller housing units to accommodate both young families with historical roots in the Parish and existing elderly residents wishing to downsize and remain in the parish. Only 17% of residents wished to leave Rowington Parish upon retirement. Anecdotal evidence also supports the view that many young families will already have left Rowington Parish and therefore would not have participated in the survey.
It is appreciated that Warwick District Council are only likely to undertake preliminary analysis of the suitability of sites, with full design solutions being the responsibility of the developers. Where significant infrastructure works are required to overcome specific site issues, the Parish Council is concerned that initial development proposals, which are acceptable to residents and the Parish Council, may not then be financially viable to the developer, or acceptable to WDC, at the density and layout originally proposed. This may lead to pressure being applied to the planners to accept a higher density proposal, or one that is inappropriate, leading perhaps, to withdrawal of the PC's support.
Rowington Parish Council wishes to safeguard the interests of residents who might be directly affected by future developments. However, Rowington Parish Council has no objection in principle to Warwick District Council undertaking further investigation of the Kingswood sites, which are located within the Parish of Rowington, in order to ascertain whether those sites are suitable for development. This agreement is based on further consultation, including the following conditions.
1. Sight of detailed hydrology modelling on sites 1 and 6.
2. Application of criteria based on recent actual occurrence of flooding, to ensure that deficiencies in the hydrological models do not allow development on land prone to flooding without diligent attention to flood mitigation and prevention, particularly with regard to the land to the rear of Kingswood Cottages.
3. Sight of outline proposals regarding housing numbers, to include housing design and mix of housing type/size.
4. Sight of outline and detailed landscaping proposals to include site screening.
5. Agreement and confirmation of the indicative settlement boundary for Kingswood village.
2. Other Sites
Rowington Parish Council has been asked to give consideration to possible small scale development at Rowington and Lowsonford, namely Areas R132, R133 and R152 in the Location Plan of Rowington dated 25 September 2013. These have been stated to be presently off the agenda for the Local Plan.
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Parish Councillors have recently become aware that Rowington Almshouse Charity has expressed interest in developing further almshouses which it considers are needed within the parish. The Parish Council believes that these almshouses permit elderly and less affluent residents to remain within the parish, with the additional benefit that a homogeneous mix of residents is retained, as far as possible, within the community.
Specifically, Area R133, adjacent to land already owned by Rowington Almshouse Charity, has been identified by the Charity and the Parish Council believes that this should be looked upon favourably by parishioners and the Parish Council. Such support is a requirement of Paragraph 2.16 in the draft Local Plan.
Rowington Parish Council would therefore be prepared to consider, in principle, other small scale developments where appropriate, subject to normal planning rules and including sight of development and traffic management proposals where applicable. In addition, confirmation of site suitability and sustainability, including confirmation that existing drainage facilities have adequate capacity to facilitate the developments at the indicative densities, given the extremely limited infrastructure available in all areas of the parish.