Battle lines drawn over 100 homes on Rochford green belt (From Echo)

Battle lines drawn over 100 homes on Rochford green belt

8:00am Wednesday 11th July 2012 in News By Emma Thomas

BATTLE-HARDENED residents are preparing for yet another fight to stop 100 homes being built on green belt near their homes.

Bellway Homes has put in the controversial application for fields next to Brays Lane, Rochford. Earlier plans have been withdrawn in the face of strong objections from local residents.

Developers hope the new plans will be more palatable as they include a parking area for the King Edmund School, an area for buses to turn, bike parking and a park.

Gary Everitt, who lives in Brays Lane and spearheads campaign group Brays Lane Action Group, said people still feel very strongly and don’t want more houses.

He said: “The opposition hasn’t gone away, the resentment hasn’t gone away either. We are no more happy about it happening now than we were before.

“There are no extra hospital places and doctor’s places.

“It is going to clog up the area.”

The first application, put forward in June 2010, was for 150 homes spread out over fields to the north and south of Brays Lane. It was withdrawn in February last year after council officers objected to the number of homes.

The new, scaled-down development site sits within a pocket of land between Brays Lane and King Edmund School.

Mr Everitt, 57, said other housing developments, such as 600 homes in Hall Road, Rochford, have recently been given the go-ahead and would have a knock-on effect for the whole area.

He added: “The bottom line is it is the first of many. It is gradually going to become more clogged up with less services and it is going to be less attractive.

“Several people are now considering moving, but they can’t in the short-term because they have lost the value of their houses.

“People move to Rochford for its semi-rural nature. If they build on it, then Rochford is going to lose that.”

The plans will go before the district council’s development committee in the next few weeks for discussion.