Our Association now has the application for the proposed Otterpool Park Town. We will be commenting further in due course.

Here it be:

Planning Application Reference Y19_0257_FH

S&DRA

‘If at first you don’t succeed, try, try and try again’.

Referring to the three FHDC Otterpool Consultations, our beloved Council has never published the results as to whether local residents were for or against the urbanisation of our countryside with a 10,000 dwelling commuter town. Moreover, the fact that local Parish Councils told Leader Monk and his Cabinet that Otterpool wasn’t welcomed sent Mr. Monk into a near apoplectic rage.

We have recently learned that a Great Chart/Singleton (Ashford) Parish Councillor has been recruited by FHDC to engage with local Parish Councils to raise their concerns over the proposed Otterpool Park development. But why a Councillor based in Ashford?

Mr. McClintock states that he has had experience of dealing with issues surrounding the Chilmington Green development so thinks he can help us iron out any issues we may have with the proposed Otterpool Park development, or words to that effect.

Now, we know nothing about Mr. McClintock and feel sure that he is an upright, law abiding, honourable citizen with good intentions, which is more than could be said about certain Councillors here in Folkestone and Hythe.

Going on past performance of Leader Monk, one has to question the motivation of recruiting Mr. McClintock when we have already met with FHDC’s experts at previous consultations. Could it be that we have never engaged with them simply because we don’t need a commuter town, thereby not ticking the Otterpool Town engagement box to prove to any Planning Inspector that Residents are ‘on board’.

Forgive our cynicism, but could it be that Mr. McClintock is being used by our own Council to engage with a number of our own Parish Councils simply to state to a Planning Inspector that Parish Councillors are now engaging and shaping the proposed Otterpool Park Town, thereby being ‘Community led’ as per the criteria for a Garden town.

As Residents, we all have the right to know in which direction our elected leaders are taking us with regard to Otterpool. Please take the time to go along to your Parish meeting and make your views known.

Did we mention that Councillor McClintock was on the payroll of Folkestone & Hythe District Council.

S&DRA.

Are you bamboozled by even the thought of responding to the District Councils Core Strategy Review (CSR) 2019……. DON’T BE.  If you still can’t see the point of it……THINK AGAIN. You will be commenting on the framework which will support developments like Otterpool New Town. No, you won’t get the opportunity to tell the District Councillors where to go or where to stick their support for mass development; you’ll have to wait until May, at the local elections, to do that.

Many of us have already given up on following protocol, commenting on various sections of the CSR document. If you’re pushed for time or find it confusing, simply email the Council.

HERE BE THE DETAILS;

CORE STRATEGY – HOW TO RESPOND

GOOD LUCK.

S&DRA.

On a previous post we advised Residents to email the FHDC planning department with their comments given that the consultation portal for the Core Strategy Review was difficult to navigate. We also requested that the 11th March deadline be extended.

The FHDC planning department have confirmed that they will accept emails and letters but have declined to extend the deadline. Here’s the proof as set out by David Whittington, Planning policy Team Leader.

‘I am afraid that the District Council is unable to extend the consultation period, however as you suggest, if any residents are having issues using Objective (the consultation portal) we are happy to accept their responses via email or letter.  I would suggest that residents submit their main points by 11th March.  If we receive any further correspondence after that date we will forward it to the Planning Inspectorate but it will be for the Inspector to decide whether to accept it’. 

No excuses: get those emails in. You have until 5pm 11th March.

S&DRA.

Well. well, well. At least one of the Shepway 3 will be attending a public meeting on mass development in and around Sellindge.

The Shepway 3; Councillors Monk, Carey and Hollingsbee who are supporting the decimation of our countryside, may, just may be turning up at a public meeting at Sellindge Village Hall on Thursday 7th March between 4 and 8 pm. This is after confirming that they would never attend a public meeting pertaining to Otterpool New Town. Council Leader Monk confirmed this at a meeting in Hythe of some 300 Residents, describing them as “Rent-a-mob”. Councillors Carey and Hollingsbee have repeatedly said on countless occasions that they would only meet a small group of individuals to discuss Otterpool for fear of hostility towards them. Here’s the evidence from the February Sellindge Newsletter: “We are also happy to meet with individuals to discuss Otterpool or indeed any other issues or concerns“. So what does that tell us about support for Otterpool Town from the masses?

Councillors Monk, Hollingsbee and Carey: Like minded supporters of ripping up our Countryside for unwanted and unneeded housing

This is all about the Core Strategy Review that is being played down by our District Council to the detriment of our rural way of life and countryside. Organised by Sellindge Parish Council, this is not a public meeting per se, but a ‘drop-in’ event which is welcomed by S&DRA, even though a little late in the day with the ‘cut off’ date being 11th March at 5pm.

We hope that you will all attend and make your views known to Sellindge Parish Council; and who knows, you may even meet one of the Shepway 3.

Don’t forget to take along your local resident ‘rent-a-mob’ friends.

Have we mentioned that the Shepway 3 are standing for re-election in early May. We may have, just once or twice.

Power to the people

S&DRA

We have been bombarded by angry residents complaining that the Core Strategy Review has never been publicised by Folkestone & Hythe District Council. It’s true that there has, to our knowledge, been no meaningful consultation or presentation relating to the future of our area. Is the attempted sprawling urbanisation being pushed through under our radar? And why aren’t our Councillors representing the residents views. Moreover, the Cabinet Member for Communities is our very own Jennifer Hollingsbee. Is she a fraud? Is she and her Council colleagues operating to their own hidden agendas?

Cllr. Hollingsbee.

We are publicising an email recently sent to FHDC by a local Parish Councillor, expressing parishioners concerns about the Core Strategy Review document. It is clear from this email that navigating your way round the various sections of the document is proving very difficult. We would urge you all who are finding similar problems to simply email your comments to planning.policy@folkestone-hythe.gov.uk with a covering note to place your comments in the appropriate section of the document. Here be the email:

Dear Sir or Madam,

CORE STRATEGY REVIEW 2019.

I am a Parish Councillor representing residents of Monks Horton.

I would respectfully ask for a time extension to commenting on the CSR document to address the following issues.

The Core Strategy Review document is confusing and very difficult to navigate for many of our residents, especially the elderly and non computer savvy. This is evidenced by the fact that only 2 people to date have made comments.

The one hour window is a distraction which doesn’t enable residents to fully consider the areas in which they wish to comment. It may be achievable by copying and pasting, but for many this is somewhat of a challenge.

Paucity of proper consultation prior to attempting to comment on the document is once again evidenced by only 2 comments on the site.

I believe that this Core Strategy Review is not sound due to the lack of information from other agencies; for example, the Water Resource Management Plan (WRMP19) from Affinity Water (AW) is still in its draft form and will not be ready to be published until the Spring of this year. Within that document, KCC, Kent Wildlife Trust and Natural England have made representations that have not been fully addressed by Affinity Water. At 20.19, concerns were raised by Natural England about desalination plants and the effects on the environment. This is AW’s response: ‘We will provide further detail in terms of potential impacts and effects within the revised dWRMP’. This is clearly unacceptable, leaving people wishing to comment in limbo as to the outcome of just this one issue. There is also no reference to the Dungeness Power Station coming back on stream with its colossal water usage.

The cumulative effect of other districts housing developments has not been addressed or considered. This is outrageous, considering the NHS GP recruitment concerns for the East Kent area alongside other infrastructure issues.

In the interim, given the complexity of the CSR document, we will advise residents to email you before the cut off date of 11th March and respectfully ask that you direct the comments in the the appropriate section of the document.

As time is of the essence, I look forward to your speedy response.

Kind regards,

Leslie Barratt. Vice Chairman. Monks Horton Parish Meeting.

Please be courteous and constructive in your comments.

S&DRA

If ever there was a time to take action to preserve our rural way of life and countryside, it is now.

You have only until the 10th March to let an independent planning inspector know your thoughts on the Folkestone & Hythe District Council (FHDC) Core Strategy. This is a framework which will support the development of areas such as Otterpool New Town.

You may have already seen the flyer but if you haven’t, please click on the links below to be shocked as to the extent of the decimation of our countryside that FHDC have planned for us all.

IT’S NOT TOO LATE TO ACT  –  IT’S NOT A DONE DEAL   DON’T LEAVE IT TO OTHERS  –  ALL OF YOUR COMMENTS CARRY WEIGHT. 

FHDC 2019 ZONING A4r (2)

SDRA Core Strategy Flyer TEXTONLY

SDRA Core Strategy Flyer COMPLETE

Please don’t be fazed by the complexity of the document: it’s purposely produced that way to deter us from commenting. Don’t be dissuaded from replicating your comments across the document; we are not planners or council officials, we are not expected to dot the i’s or cross the t’s. Please be courteous, constructive and if you have a skill within certain areas, make your comments technical, backing it up with sound evidence.

YOUR VOICE MATTERS – MAKE IT COUNT.

S&DRA