500 signatures reached
To: UTTLESFORD DISTRICT COUNCIL
ENOUGH IS ENOUGH: Save Takeley and the surrounding villages from further housing development.
Refuse the Bonnington Green application, (Reference: UTT/16/3565/OP), for 275 homes. To refuse further development sites in Takeley and any sites south of the Flitch Way and exclude them from the Uttlesford Draft Local Plan in order to protect Takeley from over development and the threat of large scale development to the rural communities south of the Flitch Way.
Why is this important?
This is a joint campaign by the Parish Councils of Takeley, Hatfield Broad Oak and Great Canfield who have now joined forces with Takeley Park Residents' Association to protect our historic communities from becoming urban housing estates. South Uttlesford cannot take any more development as the infrastructure is unable to cope with the extremely high volume of traffic we see now.
Since 2001 Takeley has had an unprecedented house building programme, growing by over 120% with no improvement to the village infrastructure or amenities.
The addition of 275 homes in the Bonnington Green proposal would cause considerable harm to the village and set a precedent for development south of the Flitch Way which to date has provided a natural boundary between Takeley and the villages to the south. Allowing this application south of the Flitch Way will open the countryside to more development. Furthermore the infrastructure including the Highway network, B1256/B183 junction, M11 junction 8, are already traffic bottlenecks and further development will exacerbate the problem. Protecting Hatfield Forest, a Site of Special Scientific Interest which is being harmed by the growth of housing and the increase in footfall, particularly accessing by the Flitch Way is also important, not only for wildlife conservation but to ensure that the site can be enjoyed for future generations.
