Response from Mrs Pam Davies (Individual)
1. Mrs Pam Davies (Individual) : 7 Jul 2017 14:24:00
Please use the drop down menu to indicate which of the following sites you are commenting on. Please use a separate form for each site.
Silverdale - part of S50
Please use the box below to make your comments.
I wish to object to the proposed inclusion of part of S50 as suitable for residential development.
1: The site is outside the envelope of the built up area of the village, and would impinge on the wide open space which is such a characteristic and much-loved feature of this part of the AONB and is recognised as such in the AONB Special Qualitied report of 2016.
2: A heavily-used and much-appreciated public footpath runs towards and through this site. It is used by both residents and visitors and benefits from the wide open views both ahead (going north) and to the east. Any residential development on this site would damage the experience of walkers on this path. It might be that a proposal would be made to divert the path round the outside of the development: while this would reduce the damage to views, it would lengthen the journey on what is used by many residents as a "getting from A to B" route.
3: Access to the plot of land is from St John's Avenue (a residential cul-de-sac which is wide enough for the traffic to and from existing properties but no more), which then enters Emesgate Lane at a junction with poor visibility very near to the village school. Emesgate Lane is often congested by lorries (eg the Co-op delivery) and buses (service and school, and minibuses with pupils of Bleasedale school), as well as parking, and an increase in residential users would be dangerous for all concerned. Given the paucity of buses and the length of walk to the station (on unlit, un-pavemented roads or field paths), the residents of any housing on this site would be likely to use cars for all journeys to work, school and elsewhere
4: Drainage is a major problem in the village and further run-off from sewage treatment for a substantial group of new homes would be likely to cause problems in the surrounding area.
5: The "thin end of the wedge" argument: if this piece of land is considered suitable for residential development, how long would it be before more and more of the area between the village and Bottoms Lane becomes built up, damaging forever the landscape qualities which lead to this being an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, whether viewed from surrounding roads, footpaths through the area, or more distant views from the Pepperpot and other local viewpoints?
This parcel of land should not be included in the Development Plan Document as a suitable site for residential development.
