Revised Development Strategy

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Revised Development Strategy

Thickthorn

Representation ID: 55461

Received: 29/07/2013

Respondent: Kenilworth Town Council

Representation Summary:

This development will provide for Employment land as well as housing and facilities.

It is a large area and may take several years to complete. For the benefit of the Town and also those who will come to live in this area this area should have a defined plan [masterplan] to cover all of the infrastructure and the development and that this overall plan should be a prerequisite to its removal from the green belt for this purpose.

Only in this way can the Town Council's objective of preserving the Town's Character be ensured.

Convinced that if this estate is developed based on an overall plan it will be a better place to live and work in as well as an asset to the Town rather than a liability.

An overall plan will avoid several parts being bolted together and thus losing the atmosphere of a Garden Suburb which is the District's wish for all its developments.

It is essential that the exitsing garden suburb character of Kenilworth ( I both social and private housing areas- with adequate space allowed for a pleasant setting for residents) is carried on through the new developments.

The overall plan must therefore address:-

Road Layout:
* This should take into account the pressures that will accrue from the development use as a whole when complete.

* There should be a spine road through the estate which is able to cope with through traffic as well as that for the estate.

* This should be used to alleviate traffic through the town which is already congested by traffic using roads constructed before the increase in the use of the motor car.

* This road could be used for traffic accessing the east of the Town from the Leamington direction and thus avoid the town centre.

* Likewise, access from the estate or from the east of the Town can also avoid the Town centre and thus ease congestion.

* The construction of this road should be a pre condition for commencement of work on the site as a whole in order to keep construction traffic out of the Town as the roads are too narrow and congested to bear any further burden.

House layout:
The new development shall be required to be in accordance with the Local Plan Garden Suburb Policy and is essential for it to be in keeping with the character of the town.

The development should compliment the character of the Town, and thus become part of it. This can be achieved only by careful planning.

Business layout:
The positioning of the employment land is an extremely important feature of this development.

At present it is shown adjacent to Warwick Road which could have a detrimental effect on this important and pleasant entrance to the town.

Suggest this area to be located along the Highway boundary. This would still have the advantage of easy access to the highway junction and further it would serve as a barrier to noise from the Highway (A46).

It should be limited to Business Park /office type use and no retail out of town shopping should be allowed or envisaged.

The introduction of any out of town shopping provision would be devastating to our small town centre.

Open Space:
In keeping with the character of the Town and also the Garden Suburb principle, there will be a need for open spaces in an area of this magnitude and provision must be made for this so that there is an opportunity for children and adults to have room to breathe. The current District suggestion that approximately 45% of the site should be occupied by open spaces and similar uses is reasonable and attainable .

School:
Having regard to the number of houses suggested the provision of a primary school for the new population would appear to be essential.

This should be situated on the estate and should be located so that safe access can be easily being gained on foot.

Such access should be encouraged in order to promote health and also prevent additional car movements and congestion.

This should form part of the overall plan.

There will also be a knock on effect on the need for Secondary School places which is estimated to be over 100. This in its turn will affect Kenilworth School.

Community Safety:

The overall plan should also allow for Community safety to be taken into account including:

During construction;
Considering Issues of crime Prevention when designing road layout, pedestrian, cycle links, open space, social infrastructure etc.

Roads:

Connections

The access to and egress from the development needs very careful consideration as it could cause extreme congestion.

A new island at the Leamington Road end of the entrances road would be the preferred option. This island would allow traffic to flow more easily than a set of traffic lights.

It would also allow for a slip road to be constructed from the new development to access the A46 and thus allow a filter of traffic from the estate directly to the highway slip road without entering either this island or the main junction island. This would spread the traffic and also allow access through the estate from eastern Kenilworth without gaining access through St Johns.

Likewise the access into Dalehouse Lane /Glasshouse Lane would require another island which would provide easier access than the provision of traffic lights.
Routes
The estate will require a spine road and this could be used to benefit the development by separating the employment element from residential.

It should also be used to spread traffic into and out of the Town as previously indicated.

It will also need to be constructed in a way that reduces the speed of traffic using it for that purpose.

This would hopefully be attained by its shape rather than speed humps or similar methods.

It is essential that this is borne in mind in the design of the road as other wise there is a danger of excessive speeds and the danger that flows from it.
Rocky Lane

Development of this area should stop at Rocky Lane in order to have a clear and defensible boundary to the incursion into the green belt that this proposal makes.

Further this tree lined road is an important local feature that should be retained especially as it gives access to the countryside.

The preservation of Rocky Lane and its character is essential as part of the conservation of the character of the area.
It should be preserved and allocated as a Local Wild life Site.

Thickthorn Ancient Wood and Glasshouse Spinney:

The wood and also the Spinney running along Glasshouse Lane and Rockey Lane are important features of the area and should also be preserved by being allocated as local Wildlife Sites.

They should also be protected by a 50 metre buffer.

Not only is this important from the point of view of conservation, but it will also serve to soften the effects of the proposed development and also preserve the character of the area and its charm.

Boundary of the Development

It has become apparent that using Rocky Lane as a boundary would not accommodate the amount of housing and employment land that would be ultimately expected for the Town and that extra land will be needed to the north of the Lane.

The need for a barrier still remains however and the Council would propose that this should be in the form of a Public Open Space dedicated to the District Council along the Northern boundary of the proposed developable area.

This would not only form a barrier against further encroachment to the North but provide further open space which could accommodate areas for use by Local organisations such as the Scouts.

Green Belt:

Always concerned by the possibility of encroachment into the green belt running along the town side of the A46.

Once encroachment is allowed in this area there is a danger for it to continue along the highway to the District Boundaries and thus mean coalescence with Coventry.

This is particularly sensitive because the gap between the Town and Coventry in the Crackley Gap is only a field's width in places.

It is felt that this danger should be emphasised in order to confirm the need for a barrier to be incorporated into the Local Plan.

Object

Revised Development Strategy

RDS3: The Council's Preferred Option for the broad location of development is to:

Representation ID: 57859

Received: 29/07/2013

Respondent: Kenilworth Town Council

Representation Summary:

HS2:
Although only a short section of the safeguarded area of the proposed route of High Speed is within the town boundary (from the A46 to Finham Brook) the route passing through the Crackley Gap and on to Burton Green will have a dramatic affect on the town.

Only a small number of residents and the Golf Club will be directly affected but both the construction phase and the completed railway will potentially affect thousands of homes.

The environment in the Crackley gap will be devastated by the diversion of the Canley Brook and will take years to recover. The Town Council remains opposed to the scheme, which will be of no benefit to the town, but is working with HS2 to attempt to mitigate the effects on the town should the railway be built

Object

Revised Development Strategy

Thickthorn

Representation ID: 57860

Received: 29/07/2013

Respondent: Kenilworth Town Council

Representation Summary:

The Local Plan is not only about the number of houses that will be allowed or the amount of Industrial land allotted but how these will be developed and what effect they will have on the existing structure and character of the Town.

This development must complement and preserve that which exists. This will require infrastructure that will connect those developments to the town and complement what we have.

The Plan's object should be not only to preserve current facilities but to improve them in order to provide for the new developments.

It should ensure that the Town continues to enjoy improved facilities and that those existing are not degraded.

Our object is to ensure that the new developments become part of our community and thus enhance it.

Funding for many of the projects or improvements that are required could and should be financed by the large sums that will be generated by the developments that will be allowed by the Local Plan.

This funding should be used to improve the Town which has attracted the development as it will be necessary to keep services and facilities at their current level for the Town and its new residents.

A comprehensive series of proposals for the development and enhancement of the Town facilities required to be considered as part of the local plan are set out (requiring further detailed consideration), including:

* community facilities,
* environmental improvements, health,
* Theatre,
* schools,
* sports;
* car parking,
* new pedestrian and cycle links,
* fire station, and
* railway station
Please refer to the original representation for full details

Object

Revised Development Strategy

RDS3: The Council's Preferred Option for the broad location of development is to:

Representation ID: 57861

Received: 29/07/2013

Respondent: Kenilworth Town Council

Representation Summary:

Crackley Triangle

This area is not in the green belt at the present time because of an error in the last Local Plan which intended that it should be included in the Green Belt.

It lies in the very sensitive Crackley Gap which is the only defence against coalescence with Coventry. Further the prospect of the development of HS2 will be a further breach of this sensitive area and will further degrade the green belt in this area.

Whilst TC are aware there are proposals for its development does not think that these are feasible because there is no viable vehicular access.

This site would be an ideal acquisition for Open Space. Adjacent to the Green Way and the Common it would be an area which could be added to the open space that the Town needs and with this use access would not cause any problem.

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