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downsmail.co.uk Village protest at housing plans


RESIDENTS in Otham and Downswood are furiously fighting proposals to earmark neighbouring countryside for almost 1,000 new homes. “Halt the Housing” bannerswent


up in the area after Maidstone Council leader Annabelle Black- more used her casting vote to re- move from the draft local plan a site south of Sutton Road in Lang- ley – home to Cllrs David Burton and KCC leader Paul Carter – but not three sites in Otham north of Sutton Road. Some members of Maidstone Council had argued that traffic flows from development either side of Sutton Road would add to con- gestion and therefore all four sites should be considered in tandem, but Cllr Blackmore told the cabinet meeting that the largest allocation – 930 homes next to Cllr Carter’s home – would be “an encroach- ment of the urban area”. Now villagers in Otham could


face 440 houses west of Church Road, next to Otham Church; 190 homes north of Bicknor Wood, Gore Court Road; and 335 homes in Bicknor Farm (an application has been submitted for 272 homes on this site). Mike Bottle, chairman of Otham


Parish Council, said: “Otham Parish Council has opposed the de- velopment of these sites at every opportunity but if we are to have any chance of stopping this further erosion of our village, we urge all residents to join our fight.” Borough Cllr Gordon Newton


said: “Maidstone Council has to lis- ten to the people and the officers must listen to the members as, at the end of the day, it is the mem- bers who are responsible for the fu-


‘No solution’ to sewerage


problems THE KCC letter cites a report from the consultancy Halcrow Group in 2010 which says that “the limited capacity of the existing sewerage ... will act as a significant constraint”. A second report, produced by in-


From left, David Hatcher, CAARA vice-chairman JimWootton, Roz Cheesman, Cllr Gordon Newton and Downswood Parish Council clerk Teresa Iriving with one of the banners


ture of this borough.” Building is already underway at


three other locations near Otham – The Coppice, Imperial Park and Langley Park – and residents fear a further influx will cause irreparable damage to both the landscape and the community, as well as over- loading roads, amenities and serv- ices such as GP surgeries and dentists. Both Otham and Downswood


parish councils are furious about Maidstone Council’s decision, as are members of the Chapman Av- enue Area Residents’ Association (CAARA), who are urging people to re-submit their objections when the draft local plan once more goes out to consultation. CAARA chairman David Hatcher said: “This is a new phase of consultation, so we need to re- peat the reasons for our objection


and make our voices heard indi- vidually, aswell as collectively. “However, objections must be


based on sound planning reasons.” Roz Cheesman, chairman of Downswood Parish Council, said: “Downswood has no space for fur- ther development – 440 homes next to Otham Church equates to almost ‘a new half Downswood’.” Downswood is already densely populated, with just three vehicu- lar access points –Willington Street (a busy county town bypass), Mal- lardWay/Spot Lane (liable to flood and closure) and Church Road/Gore Court Road (a narrow country lane). Mrs Cheesman said: “Increased


traffic generated by the potential 1,897 nearby new homes, (492 of which are under way) cannot be safely accommodated.” Regular raw sewage leaks occur


frastructure expert Amey, claimed that “the foul water sewerage sys- tem within Maidstone has little or no capacity to accept additional flows…this represents issues for fu- ture development.” Ms Cooper writes: “KCC has, to


date, not seen any technical solu- tions to address the sewerage ca- pacity issues and the cost of delivering the required improve- ments. “In the absence of this informa-


tion, the county council reiterates its strong objection to the proposed allocations to the urban periphery of Maidstone on the basis that the sites are not deliverable, notwith- standing their unsuitable location and contribution to urban sprawl.”


in Downswood, the GP surgery is already overstretched and there are fewer than 20 primary school places available, according to coun- cillors.


Residents can get the latest infor- mation at www.othampc.kent- parishes.gov.uk.


Sewage pipes ‘wrongway round’ Decision on Continued from page one


be “tapped into” even with its own pumping station, Cllr Round said: “The whole foul


water system is a set of issues that knock on to each other like a set of dominoes – and the Sanderson re- port proves it. “Any building of any number of houses will have an adverse effect on the whole system.” Maidstone Council planning offi-


cers were given a copy of the Sanderson report prior to the local plan meetings in January – and Cllr Round presented it again to the cab- inet on February 4. He said: “There have been nu- merous meetings with Southern Water about the problems borough- wide and the issues raised in this re- port but Maidstone Council is forging ahead with its draft local plan.


“Members were not informed of 26 Maidstone South April 2015


its serious issues and consequences. I then had to re-enforce its message at the recent planning committee meeting to members of that com- mittee, when again MBC officers had not provided it as pertinent ev- idence.” “We continue to engage with Southern Water and press the points.” In the report, Ian Ellis from Sanderson Engineers said he was surprised by the number of pipes ef- fectively lain the wrong way and said he would “maybe expect to come across one or two – but not 14”. In addition to this and the 15


pipes which do not have the capac- ity to take estimated flows, Mr Ellis said therewere also numerous loca- tions where the flow in the existing pipe did not provide enough veloc- ity to achieve a self-cleansing regime.


“There are numerous locations


where a self-cleansing scheme is not achieved and therefore these pipes may be subject to blockage and a build-up of foul material possibly causing flooding and reduced ca- pacity,” said Mr Ellis. Sanderson carried out its assess-


ment of the existing infrastructure between October and December 2014. The report concludes: “If a pipe


does not have the capacity to ac- commodate the likely flows, then the upstream pipes and manholes in the network may be subject to sur- charge and possible flooding.” Cllr Round said: “The proximity


to the River Beult and its several joining rivers and streams also exac- erbates Headcorn’s flood risk which has three tributaries of confluence to the Beult in the immediate village area. This then increases the risk for Yalding and the Medway areas.”


homes deferred A PROPOSAL for 13 homes south of Lenham Road, Headcorn was deferred by Maidstone Council's planning committee. Although earlier this year the council's cabinet deleted the north- ern part of the proposed develop- ment land – east of Thatch Barn Road – from the housing allocation sites on the draft local plan, officers recommended the scheme could help meet the need for homes in the borough and recommended ap- proval. However, after being told that 25 objections had been made, council- lors felt infrastructure concerns in the village had not been resolved. Cllr Tony Harwood was un-


happy with landscaping measures and the committee unanimously agreed to defer for improvements to be made in this area, aswell as in drainage and biodiversity.


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