Save Our Sidmouth

Category Archives: East Devon Issues


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Knowle evidence at Inspector’s disposal is inadequate, says SOS legal representative

Inspector Anthony Thickett, himself a chartered town planner, yesterday continued the Examination in Public of EDDC’s Local Plan, with the second half of the Sidmouth hearing.
He heard representations on Questions 2c and 3,which were:

2c Are the proposed allocations suitable for the development for which they are proposed?
The Knowle,Port Royal,Manstone depot residential allocations
-loss of employment
-traffic
-impact on the character and appearance of the area

3. Does Sidmouth have the infrastructure to support the level of new development envisaged in the Local Plan?

Two additional representations were also discussed, namely:
-Persimmon Homes (SW), proposing allocation of land for housing at Woolbrook Road
-Mr R. Eley proposing the allocation of land east of Fortescue Rd for hotel use

Regarding 2c
Representations regarding the Knowle were wide-ranging, as expected. Charlie Hopkins, speaking for Save Our Sidmouth, pointed out that EDDC refused to let even the Inspector see the valuation report on the Knowle, on the grounds of ‘commercial confidentiality’. “The only evidence you have got”, he told Mr Thickett, “is four pages from the Lister report”.

Vice-Chair of Knowle Residents’ Association (KRA), Kelvin Dent, cited the loss of 121 office HQ jobs from Sidmouth, as not conforming to Strategy 32 as it stands at the moment. Relocation of the Council’s maintenance department currently at Knowle, could mean an additional loss of manual jobs to the town, he said, and would result in a greater expense of sending staff in from elsewhere, for example, Honiton. The large scale residential development proposed would create access problems, he continued, as had been clearly indicated when EDDC’s earlier Knowle planning application had failed.

His fellow town councillors, David Addis and Ian Barlow , both argued that the sale of the Knowle site was only to fund new EDDC offices.”Knowle should be left well alone”, said Mr Barlow.

Julia Harbour, of KRA, drew attention to the unsuitability of the site for development due to the wildlife, particularly roosting bats in the building and an active badger sett.

This report will be continued shortly.


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How EDDC’s ‘democratic deficit’ persists

Last Wednesday’s astoundingly undemocratic Full Council meeting systematically belittled or entirely ignored those who offered the chance for proper debate.
Consequently, there has been an exchange of e-mails between a member of Save Our Sidmouth (SOS) and a senior Conservative councillor who could not understand why the Tory councillors had been heckled.

Here’s an extract:

The SOS member wrote: “The fact that most of those booed were members of that particular political group is immaterial – most of us at national level are probably Conservative supporters. It was what individual councillors were saying – and in some cases the way they were saying it – that provoked that reaction. It does seem rather odd that all the members of that group who are there to represent the disparate interests of the seven urban areas and all the rural wards can find no reason to challenge any of the points made by their fellow Conservatives on last night’s key issue of relocation, but seize every opportunity to mount personal attacks on any other members who happen to disagree with what the majority party want to do.”

The senior Conservative Councillor replied, “… we (Tory Councillors) should be afforded the courtesy to voice our opinion as indeed the public were allowed their opportunity to speak to express their opposing opinion. The truth of the matter is that such exchanges at Council meetings are frankly destructive and therefore wasteful of valuable time.”
”

The Leader himself has noticed this “democratic deficit” at EDDC. See http://sidmouthindependentnews.wordpress.com/2013/02/25/east-devon-district-council-we-know-best-permeates-the-council-like-the-writing-in-a-stick-of-seaside-rock/