The housing association conglomerate Connexus has submitted a new application for five bungalows on the green space between Sidney Road and Charlton Rise. A previous application for five bungalows on this site was rejected by a majority at a South Planning Committee meeting a couple of months ago. The plans are different in detail but not in principle.
This site has an unhappy history. The first plans for development were drawn up by architects at the beginning of 2016. That means they must have been instructed in 2015. The first most people knew about the threat to the green was when South Shropshire Housing Association[1] felled a tree without notice. Faced with a backlash – residents and councillors were furious and I threatened to tie myself to the remaining tree – the tree felling was halted. The housing association then attempted to misinform us. It said the felling of the 100% healthy tree was to “mitigate costs to residents” of its maintenance. There was no acknowledgement that the trees had been planted nearly 40 years ago after a fund raiser among Sidney Road residents by the mayor. And no acknowledgement that the housing association had already drawn up plans that required felling of both Norway Maples.
Just weeks later, we heard of plans for seven bungalows on what many regard as a community green. These were met with a wall of objection. They were shortly replaced by plans for five bungalows. With one dissenter, this plan was thrown out by the South Planning Committee on 1 August.
Now the plans are back (17/05170/FUL). They are tweaked rather than changed. The parking area in Sidney Road, which would have conflicted with the bus stop, has been replaced with a bin collection area. Narrow gardens are planned on the side of the bungalows facing the remaining green. This will reduce the expose of residents’ front doors to passing pedestrians, not all of whom will be sober, during the day and late at night.
Beyond that, the plans are much the same. The Norway Maple still gets the chop.
This development will provide much needed affordable bungalows. But the loss of a significant tree and much of the community green counts against the scheme. This is going to be a difficult application for the South Planning Committee to get the planning balance right.
Notes
[1]. South Shropshire Housing Association has been absorbed into a bigger organisation known as Connexus.
I had hoped that this plan had been scotched. I think that infilling an this site will have a very detrimental effect. This is not a very beautiful area of town but the green area calms an otherwise busy built environment. This green area links Sheet road to the countryside beyond the A49, it keeps Ludlow in context with the surrounding landscape, in this regard the potential loss of the trees is particularly bad news.
I hope the residents campaign an are successful.
Strongly agree with all that. If this application, too, is rejected, could that green space not be speedily made a Town Green as was previously suggested?
PS any news of 701 bus route while Galdeford roadwork goes on? I couldn’t find any, so found other means.
I do hope like many others Andy Boddington will once again threaten to chain himself to this reminding Norway maple!
This development in in traditional open green space use for decades for recreation and healthy exercise.
The development is without any imagination or aesthetic value and illustrates the greed and avarice of this merged association.