guide to the proposed strategic site allocations M20 Junction 8
The Vision Light industrial and distributionmix at one or a combi- nation of the following greenfield sites: West of Junction 8, north of Ashford Road and boundedbyMusket Lane in theeastandWoodcutFarm in thewest. Furtherwest, bounding Crismill Lane,would bea6.9-hectacre landscapedarea. Theoverall siteis25 hectares and owned by brothers Nick and Colin Leggat. East of Junction 8, north of Ashford Road and west of EyhorneStreet–3.5hectaresownedbyRobertWiles. South of Junction 8, south of Ashford Road, east of Old Mill Road, north of the River Len and west of the Mercure GreatDanesHotel–16hectares ownedby the Gallagher Group. Ashford Road improvements including traffic lights at thePenfold Hill junction and GreatDanesaccess; im- provements to the Willington Street junction.
Cabinet The council admits theWoodcut Lane proposal is con- troversial because it is on part of the land that it fought to prevent from becoming the Kent International Gate- way road/rail freight interchange. Axa’s planning appli- cationwas eventually refused two years ago. It says theWoodcut Lane site could generate 49,000
sqmof employment space but no unitwould be bigger than 15,000 sqmor higher than 8m. Council leader Cllr Chris Garland says the area had
been identified forwarehousing and therewas no desig- nation to protect it: “We could saywe are not going to do anything with Junction 8, but if somebody comes along withaschemeandwereject it,wewouldhavenocontrol of the type of development if it is overturned on appeal.”
Opposition Borough councillors Richard Ash, Mike Cuming, Val Springett, Wendy Hinder, Nick de Wiggondene, Peter Parvin, Daphne Parvin, Paulina Stockell and Gordon Newton have all gone on record to oppose theWoodcut
Langley Park
The Vision South of Sutton Road (Langley Park) – 600 homes bordering Park Wood to the west. In- cludes a new primary school, community hall, store and pub/restaurant North of Sutton Road (opposite Langley Park) – 285 homes. New access from Gore Court Road, which will be widened. East of Gore Court Road, south ofWhite Horse Lane – 190 homes. Buffer zone between the site and BicknorWood to the south. Adedicated bus lane created along an existing road-side verge, running from Willington Street to the Wheatsheaf junction. A sixth of the site to be retained as public open space.
Cabinet Council leader Chris Garland said: “The devel- opment at Langley was in the plan back in 2000, and was deemed appropriate at the time, by all parties, so should come as no surprise. “The idea of the public consultation is to get
the views of the people, not just the politicians. We need to hear what they have to say, study the responses we receive and engage with their views.”
Opposition The LibDems say they are concerned about the damage to the air quality and the environment. The group argued the size and scale of the combined estates over separate sites would add huge stress to the overloaded road network. Cllr Fran Wilson said: “No proposals have
been made within either of the consultation doc- uments to address the adverse effects upon ex- isting communities in terms of air quality, congestion and related rat-running through neighbouring residential streets.
“Unless and until we see evidence that these concerns have been recognised and a real strat- egy developed to address congestion, and air pollution in particular, we will withhold our support for the Strategic Housing Allocation in South East Maidstone.” Boxley Parish Council is also concerned that
many residents will useWillington Street, Ash- ford Rod and New Cut Road to access J7 of the M20, adding to the inevitable increase in traffic flows resulting from the hospital development.
To contact Downs Mail just phone 01622 630330 SENACRE
Farm scheme, as has KCCmember JennyWhittle and a number of local parish councils. But fears that opposition to this development could
favour one of the alternative sites, to the south of the A20, have been expressed by the opposition LibDems. Cllr Tony Harwood said: “Any development south of
theA20would be detrimental to the landscape and the waterways, including causing damage to the River Len and its wildlife.” LeedsCastle chiefexecutiveVictoriaWallace is urging
residents to lobby Hugh Robertson MP, who has now taken on the tourism portfolio aswell as sport. She said: “This has the potential to destroy the local tourism economy, and the rural approach to the castle.”
“The market wants development close to motorway junctions, with ease of access”
Not in favour OPPOSITION to develop- ment at J8 was evident when the roadshow visited the Mercure Great Danes Hotel. The council’s head of plan-
ning Rob Jarman said serious concerns had been expressed about developing J8. He added: “Once the consulta- tion is complete, the council has to decide on one of the three sites – or decide to do nothing. Or,maybe, someone will suggest an alternative.” But Victoria Wallace, chief executive of Leeds Castle, said: “Numbers at the castle are already restricted on Fri- day evenings because of the possible impact on the M20, yet we are talking about adding to the volume of traf- fic using J8. It’s nonsense! “At Leeds Castle, we pro-
Cllr Chris Garland
vide jobs and generate busi- ness – the impact of an industrial development a few hundred yards from our main gate would be phenom- enal. It could cost the town over £30m a year.” Ms Wallacesaidifthe council was hell-bent on de- veloping a site at J8, it should be advertised to interested parties with suitable and ap- propriate development ideas. Bearsted resident Rose-
mary Harlow said: “We spent three and a half years fight- ing KIG. We feel betrayed. Our countryside is being cut to pieces before our eyes.” Mrs Harlow was also con- cerned that archaeological sites could be devastated. “There is evidence of Roman settlement in the area but Maidstone council isn’t in- terested in our heritage – they just see pound signs.”
A wider view THE LibDem opposition be- lieves there are other sites within Maidstone that could be used for sustainable de- velopment in the urban area. They claim the ruling
PARK WOOD
group has identified two strategic housing sites, rather than dispersing housing throughout the borough. They also believe the coun-
cil should work with neigh- bouring authorities with regard to commercial and res- idential development, saying there is vacant warehousing in both Swale and Tonbridge and Malling, which also has pockets of vacant space for residential use. “Maidstone is not an island
andweneedtoworkwith our neighbours,” said Cllr FranWilson. “There are a lot of windfall
sites and, as new houses are built, the number we need to provide diminishes.”
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