High price of airport growth (From Echo)
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High price of airport growth
2:48pm Monday 4th January 2010 in News
I strongly object to further development at Southend Airport.
It will add to road congestion, increase noise and air pollution, seriously impact on the lives of people under or close to the flightpath, and have a significant impact on property prices.
There will be increased costs for council taxpayers to pay compensation to homeowners, increased harmful emissions and increased council taxcharges to provide improved infrastructure to airport users.
All I can see is another prime example of poor, negligent service to residents from out-of-touch councillors in Rochford and Southend who appear to hold unrepresentative and questionable views on the type of development that can be acceptable, while failing to protect and guarantee an environment that is necessary to provide an acceptable quality of life.
Given the groundswell of opinion against development generated by the Mayor of London’s office and councils faced with applications for expanding Stansted, Heathrow and Gatwick, I find it difficult to comprehend the fact that here we have two councils in south-east Essex publicly in favour of controversial development.
I can only hope voters exercise their right to remove any councillors found negligent in their duty of care regarding the interests of residents rather than pandering to the needs of environmentally ruinous planning applications such as that being proposed by organisations like the Stobart Group.
Kieran Kelly
Southend Road
Rochford
...Once again I have been amazed by the attitude of our elected councillors.
This time it is Lib Dem Mike Grimwade who is the representative of the area most affected by the airport’s expansion.
His attitude seems to be he will make his own mind up, notwithstanding what the majority of his voters think, and will then not tell us which way he has voted.
There can only be one reason for this – he is scared of being voted out of office. What a spineless approach. Stand up and be counted, Mr Grimwade.
I can understand this attitude from our council leader, Nigel Holdcroft, but I always thought the Liberals were better than this. Leigh ward’s Lib Dem Alan Crystall certainly is.
Tony Halls
Westborough Road
Westcliff
BASILBRUSH says...
10:30pm Mon 4 Jan 10
He has nearly stated that he will base his decision on the facts presented. Not by pressure from either side of the fence.
It seems SAEN's tactics have turned to insulting the DCC members personally. Desperate.
Why will the tax payer have to foot the bill for compensation? And what compensation are you refering to?
The extension at Southend is nit remotely on the same scale as Gatwick, Heathrow and Stansted.
Property prices would have been adjusted to compensate for the airport when they were built! Without investmentbfrom companies such as Stobart, property prices will drop due to the continued decline of the area.
The airport is a positive not a negative.
As for the suggestion that the majority are against. Sorry the figures are against you there. Just about every poll carries support, and only less than 1% of the area population were that moved to comment against.