by admin | Dec 12, 2016 | Cranleigh, Cranleigh Waters, Dunsfold, Waverley Borough Council
Dunsfold Park planning application goes before the Joint Planning Committee at Waverley this Wednesday 14 December at 6:30pm.
If you are planning to attend the meeting we would suggest you arrive at least an hour before, as there is bound to be considerable interest in this development.
The application includes 1,800 residential dwellings, in addition to 7,500sqm care accommodation; a local centre to comprise retail, financial and professional, cafes/restaurant/takeaway and/or public house up to a total of 2,150sqm; new business uses including offices, and research and development industry up to a maximum of 3,700sqm; light and general industry up to a maximum of 7,500sqm; storage and distribution up to a maximum of 11,000sqm; a further 9,966sqm of flexible commercial space; non-residential institutions including health centre, relocation of existing Jigsaw School into new premises and provision of new community centre up to a maximum of 9,750sqm and a two-form entry Primary School.
The application also includes a new sewage treatment plant. We have continued to raise concerns about water quality and the discharge point of liquid sewage effluent (by-product of the treatment process) from the site.
The Environment Agency in a letter to Waverley Borough Council on 6 December 2016 have objected to the application, stating that:
“In accordance with paragraph 109 of the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) and the associated National Planning Practice Guidance (NPPG) we object to the proposed development as submitted for the reasons outlined below and on the basis that it may have a significant adverse impact on water quality.”
Read the full EA letter here
The current proposal now appears to favour discharging into Loxwood Stream (sometimes referred to as the River Lox). The previous proposal had included the use of the Wey & Arun Canal but this has now been ruled out as unsuitable. A new report published against the planning application “Risk assessment for treated sewage disposal” Ref: 65550TN1D1 and dated November 2016 states that:
“Indeed, for the purposes of this assessment, Loxwood Stream has been taken forward as the potential receiving watercourse. This is based on the fact that the pro rata calculation to estimate flow at the point of discharge would seem to be more reliable than that undertaken for Cranleigh Water, where the influence of sewage treatment effluent downstream of the proposed Dunsfold Park outfall makes any pro rata calculation potentially unreliable without benefit of more detailed flow data.”
Cranleigh Civic Society is now a member of the Cranleigh Waters Partnership, along with Thames Water, the Environment Agency and Surrey Wildlife Trust. Our next meeting takes place on 15 December 2016.
Elmbridge Road Sewage Treatment Works (STW) is currently exceeding its original capacity for a maximum 15,000 residents and Cranleigh Waters, into which sewage effluent is discharged, is already failing in terms of water quality.
Permission has already been GRANTED for nearly 800 new houses in Cranleigh and the following pending applications will also be sending their sewage to be treated in Cranleigh and will discharge sewage effluent into Cranleigh Waters:
WA/2016/2207 Knowle Park Initiative (West Cranleigh Nurseries) – now in name of A2Dominion Developments Limited- Alfold Road, 265 dwellings
WA/2015/1381 Springbok Estate, Alfold 480 dwellings and primary school (at Appeal)
WA/2014/2384 Hewitts Industrial Estate, Cranleigh 120 dwellings (at Appeal)
WA/2016/1921 Thakeham Homes, Elmbridge Road, Cranleigh 58 dwellings
Waverley Borough Council has not raised any concerns about the impact on water quality with regard to these applications totalling over 1,700 dwellings.
by admin | Jun 25, 2016 | Berkeley Homes, Cranleigh, Crest Nicholson, Development, Dunsfold, Green Belt, KPI, Little Meadow, Waverley Borough Council
With the recent publication of the Agenda and accompanying Local Plan documents for the Joint Overview and Scrutiny Committee for Monday, 27th June, 2016 7.00 pm came the shocking news that Waverley are dumping 45% of their total housing allocation in and around Cranleigh, with a new settlement on Dunsfold Park.
Waverley’s published Local Plan documents include Strategic Sites selected across the borough. This includes two strategic sites in Cranleigh, including phase 2 of the Crest Nicholson site with an additional 101 houses off the Horsham Road, this increases the total housing number on this site to 250 houses.
The other site is an amalgamation of the Berkeley Homes, Little Meadow and Knowle Park Initiative sites, creating a huge mega-site off the Alfold Road of 765 houses. The West Cranleigh Nurseries site (Knowle Park Initiative) which was going to be refused by planning officers, then got called in by Cllr Brian Ellis, thereby by-passing officers’ decision and finally was refused by Waverley’s Joint Planning Committee.
You can look at the full meeting details and documents using the link below:
https://modgov.waverley.gov.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=171&MId=2028&Ver=4
Dunsfold New Town
It is clear that Waverley are now favouring 2,600 new houses at Dunsfold Park and this has also been identified as a strategic site.
At the moment there is a planning application for 1,800 houses on this site, however, Waverley have delayed making a decision on this. You can still add your comments and objections against this application.
Any housing on Dunsfold is in addition to 1,520 houses in Cranleigh, as well as 335 in the surrounding villages. This brings the total amount of new housing in this area to 4,455, which is equivalent in total to a new settlement the size of Cranleigh.
Dunsfold in the 2011 census had a population of 989 with 467 dwellings. Should an additional 2, 600, plus 80 dwellings be added to Dunsfold village, this will be almost a six-fold increase in the number of houses and with the proposed business expansion create a new town adjacent to Alfold and Cranleigh.
A previous attempt to develop a new town at Dunsfold Aerodrome was put forward in 2007 and sought to develop a town of exactly the same size with 2,600 houses. This was rejected by Waverley and dismissed at Appeal as unsustainable.
The planning inspector stated at the 2009 Appeal; “The site is not in a sustainable location and little can be done to improve the existing infrastructure.” Under Overall Conclusions, he stated “The Secretary of State has concluded that the development would generate a considerable amount of additional road traffic and he concludes that this would have a severe and unacceptable impact on an overstretched local road network, and that the scheme would be unsustainable in transport terms.”
What has changed in the surrounding area since 2009 to make the road network around Cranleigh now sustainable to Waverley Planning Officers?
What are the implications for Cranleigh?
With the proposal for 1,520 more houses for Cranleigh and almost 3,000 in total in neighbouring villages the effect on Cranleigh and the high risk of coalescence between Cranleigh, Dunsfold and Alfold is huge.
In the gaps between these three areas there will be continued pressure by developers to acquire land for residential and commercial use. The Cranleigh Neighbourhood Plan provides no policies for any buffer zones or strategic gaps between these settlements, and it does not suit Waverley to limit development in countryside beyond the green belt. The pressure to develop and fill these gaps could be constant and overwhelming.
Cranleigh is deemed the nearest main service centre for Dunsfold and Alfold and there will be massive impacts on the village from all the development:
- Urbanisation of our village and loss of countryside. At the recent consultation regarding the relocation of the Cranleigh Primary School when the developer’s agent was asked about the urban feel to the proposed housing they replied that Waverley wanted an urban look.
- 4,500 houses will double the number of local cars on our road infrastructure (this is approximately the same number of houses that Cranleigh has in total NOW). That’s a potential 9,000 extra vehicles.
- Increased traffic will lead to increased congestion, especially on the roads in and out of Cranleigh, Bramley and Shamley Green as well as all locations along the A281.
- There will be a significant impact on local services including our doctors and schools.
- The negative impact on Air Quality from traffic emissions from petrol and diesel-engined motor vehicles include a wide variety of pollutants, principally carbon monoxide (CO), oxides of nitrogen (NOx), volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and particulate matter (PM10), which have an increasing negative impact on air quality, on public health and on the environment. In addition, pollutants from these sources may not only prove a problem in the immediate vicinity of these sources, but can be transported long distances.
- The current sewerage system has no capacity and there is no provision being made for a 100% increase in liquid effluent being discharged into Cranleigh Waters and no mitigation being proposed. Waverley have not even done a Water Cycle Study, which is usually carried out at the beginning of the Local Plan process.
- Cranleigh is in an area of known severe “Water Stress” as acknowledged by Surrey County Council Water Management Report Sept 2013. This combination of increased housing and limited supply could lead to serious water shortages.
- Requirement for large increase in electrical supply. EDF indicated to Waverley in January 2011 that Cranleigh would require an increase in capacity if there was a significant increase in population. This also appears to have NOT been factored in so far.
Have your say
Waverley say in the Local Plan documents that:
“The vitality and viability of the main centres of Farnham, Godalming, Haslemere and Cranleigh will have been safeguarded in a way that takes account of their distinctive roles. This will have been achieved through carefully planned development, which meets the need of these centres, whilst recognising the importance of preserving and enhancing their historic character” [our emphasis]
We have never read such utter and blatant ‘spin’ regarding development in and around Cranleigh. We know that the only reason they are dumping housing here is simply because there is NO GREEN BELT.
It’s time to let the Leader of Waverley Borough Council, Julia Potts and the planning portfolio holder, Brian Adams what you think about their decision to dump 45% of their housing allocation in and around Cranleigh
Tell them by email, always include your name and address and copy in both the Cranleigh Civic Society – info@cranleighsociety.org and your MP Anne Milton – anne.milton.mp@parliament.uk :
Julia Potts – julia.potts@waverley.gov.uk
Brian Adams – brian.adams@waverley.gov.uk
by admin | Jun 20, 2016 | Cranleigh, Development, Dunsfold, Waverley Borough Council
Waverley’s Local Plan is due to go before the Joint Overview and Scrutiny Committee at Waverley on Monday, 27th June, 2016 7.00 pm which includes a recommendation for 45% (4, 455 houses) of Waverley’s total housing allocation to be dumped in Cranleigh and the surrounding villages.
This puts 1,520 houses in Cranleigh alone, which is 15.4% of the total allocation for the borough, and an increase in the total housing in the village of a massive 34%.
Then there’s a further 26.4% allocated to Dunsfold Aerodrome, bringing the total allocation between just these two areas to 42% of the entire housing for Waverley.
Additional 335 houses are proposed in:
Alfold – 100 houses
Dunsfold (village) – 80 houses
Ewhurst – 65 houses
Bramley – 70 houses
Wonersh and Shamley Green – 20 houses
This will result in almost 11,000 more people in this part of the borough, with another 9,000 cars on the rural road network.
You can read the full document going before the Committee next Monday by clicking on the link below:
6. The Amount and Location of Housing.
The Local Plan Part One will go out to consultation and we will keep you informed of its progress.
by admin | Apr 26, 2016 | Development, Dunsfold, Housing, Waverley Borough Council
It has been confirmed that a request for a ‘call in’ has been made to the Secretary of State for the Dunsfold Park planning application for 1,800 dwellings.
Anyone can request for an application to be called in. IF this call in is successful this means that the Secretary of State will take the decision-making power on this planning application out of the hands of Waverley Borough Council as the local planning authority and he will decide whether it should be granted or refused.
‘Calling in’ can be done at any time during the planning application process, up to the point at which the local planning authority actually makes the final decision.
Once the planning application is called in, there will be a public inquiry chaired by a planning inspector, or lawyer, who based on their findings will make a recommendation to the Secretary of State.
The Secretary of State can choose to reject the inspector’s recommendations if he wishes and will genuinely take the final decision.
You can read more about the application in the recent article on the GetSurrey website
