19/00007/EIA/AS – Screening opinion for proposed development of land at Appledore Road/Woodchurch Road, Tenterden, so as to accommodate up to 250 house with associated car parking, landscaping and community facilities to include place space and community orchard, together with a 8.57ha country park encompassing natural place areas and outdoor classroom and land for five football pitches, changing rooms, pavilion and parking on land between Woodchurch Road and, Appledore Road, Tenterden, Kent

I am writing on behalf of the Tenterden & District Residents Association (TDRA) to state the importance of undertaking an EIA for this important greenfield site for the following reasons:

1. The site is designated as a Local Character Area and is bounded by the High Weald AONB to the east; Ancient Woodland and Kent SLA (Special Landscape Area) to the north and Tenterden Conservation Area to the west with listed buildings abutting it.
2. The proposed 250 units as well as the incremental development surrounding this site, including Tilden Gill (100 units) and Hales Place (4 units) will have a cumulative effect on the ecological environment as well as wild life.
3. There have been recent professional studies of this land showing it to be a ‘special’ example of unimproved grassland typical of the medieval Wealden field system with many historical hedgerows, some several hundreds of years old.
4. The land also has significant heritage, namely as the site of the town gallows for over 300 years.
5. There are a number of ancient ponds which are linked by a complex system of streams and ditches and we are concerned that domestic waste, including surface water drainage from this development will harm the surrounding ecology and wildlife, including protected species of amphibians. There is already precedent of an overloaded local sewerage system.
6. We believe that important strategic views will be significantly harmed, including the view to St Mildred’s Church.
7. There will be an overall loss of mature trees harming the existing wild life including protected species such as roosting bats.
8. We refute the claim that a development of this scale can improve the current biodiversity of this land, which has evolved over hundreds of years and is extremely rich in both flora and fauna.

This development proposal would be completely unsustainable when considering the development already included in the Local Plan for Tenterden.

Siggi Nepp
TDRA Planning Secretary

Posted by Planning Committee
Monday 22nd July 2019

Hits: 2653   Comments: 0

---

< Back to Planning