Testun llawn:
I would like to submit my objection to the proposed Traveller / Gypsy site on Stratford Road in Warwick.
The reasons for my objection are as follows.
Although it may be claimed otherwise there will be a significant impact on the economy in the surrounding area by choosing this site. The impact will not only be on the existing Tournament Fields estate but will also be detrimental to surrounding businesses including hotels, shops and pubs. The site will also have a detrimental effect on house prices in the surrounding area, making some in the close vicinity almost unsellable. The negative financial impact on so many homes will be significant.
The chosen location is at extremely high risk of not only flooding for the residents but is also extremely dangerous for the residents children being so close to the river and to the sewage works. It is also very close to both the M40 and the Stratford Rd, both very busy roads. I believe the cost to manage the risk of flooding the proposed site and the cost to make it safe for families would be too high to justify selecting this location.
There will be a considerable negative impact on wildlife near to and on the proposed site including birds, newts, otters etc. There are surely more suitable sites that will have no negative impact on nature and without having to ruin another piece of this green land and beautiful scenery with caravans, sound reducing hills and the likes.
This proposed site would overpower the surrounding housing and greenery. It would be quite a blot on the landscape and surely can't be acceptable if it stands out, even if hidden by shrubbery or these mounds to soften the noise pollution. As it would dominate the surrounding area I believe that this would be unacceptable to allow this proposed site.
The families expected to move to the proposed site cannot be expected to put up with the level of noise generated from the M40. From over 1km away we can hear it very well and can't believe that the council would propose to house families within a few hundred feet., especially when it is at a lower lever and where it would be impossible to shield regardless of the type of sound barrier.
It is also very unfair to house these families within a short distance of the sewage works where the smell can on occasion be very bad.
The choice of road into the proposed site means that an already dangerous junction will become even more dangerous. With travelling caravans visiting or leaving the site and the communities work vans pulling in and out on a number of occasions and probably at the busiest points of the day. This junction would become a death trap for those not only entering or exiting that stretch of road but also for traffic using Stratford Rd.
I have checked out the proposed road to the proposed site from this junction and I believe it is unsuitable for not only the increase in traffic but also the kind of traffic, caravans, and large vans that would continually use it daily. The cost to improve their road to a satisfactory width and to be capable of handling the amount of traffic again makes this unviable.
As this site has never been part of the local plan when developing Chase Meadow and for the schools and doctors I believe that this proposed site and the families living there would add an increased burden on the local services and community.
My final point is related to the way in which after a long process of selection where Stratford Rd was never mentioned I feel that it has been included in quite a hurry and that those who have selected it as a possible location have not fully considered many points while being in a hurry to provide any location for this travelling community. I also believe the manner in which it was communicated was in really bad taste as it all seemed to happen suddenly as if to catch the local and existing community by surprise and hoping to push it through without considering the impact on the area, and the families themselves.
Although I agree that this community should and can be found a suitable location in Warwickshire I believe that my reasons for this proposed site not being selected at Stratford Rd should be enough for this objection to be accepted.