Freshwater Parish Council has expressed concern that the forthcoming Island Plan does not reflect its views or those of its residents.
According to Freshwater Parish Council, most local people believe the settlement boundary should not be expanded to allow development of further greenfield sites on the fringes of the village.
The draft Island Planning Strategy document proposes 252 new houses in Freshwater over 15 years: the largest allocation for any village on the Island. Based on previous experience, the council believes affordable housing in these proposed new housing estates would be minimal.
Parish councillors have asked why the latest draft of the Island Plan is at odds with Isle of Wight Council policies, such as net zero carbon emissions across the Island by 2030, and preservation of UNESCO Biosphere Reserve status.
Island residents have just a few days to make their feelings known about the draft Island Plan to their ward councillors before it goes to the Planning Inspectorate. Freshwater parish councillors believe that this is not enough time to review the 195-page draft document in full.
Freshwater’s parish councillors have stated that a continuation of previous planning mistakes would allow urban sprawl beyond village boundaries, nullifying the protections put in place for agricultural land that could be producing local food, and environmentally important sites.
Chairman of Freshwater Parish Council, Daniel James, said:
“We simply don’t have the employment opportunities in the West Wight to support hundreds of new houses being built on local agricultural land. If the Isle of Wight Council is serious about sustainable transport, it should be rebalancing employment policy to ensure that people can work in their local communities rather than commuting.”
Article continues below this advertisement “We all know that Newport’s road system can’t carry more vehicle traffic, and further centralising the economy in the county town is only going to make that problem worse. The Island’s villages should be thriving communities, not just dormitory suburbs built to meet some arbitrary development target.”
Well done Freshwater Council. Now need all the other island’s councils to do the same.
Freshwater is over run anyway, we have those dreadful pretentious delusions houses on the way to alum bay, what an eyesore! Now they want more rubbish development of of an aonb whilst preaching protect the environment and carbon zero, they try and make you feel guilty for breathing because you damage the environment but it’s ok to build monstrosities on green fields. Hypocritical, two faced brown envelope grabbing pigs.
Well done Freshwater Council.
Let us hope that all the other island councils do the same.
This plan needs to go through as quickly as possible. The fact that we do not have a plan means more greenfield development as applications are given the go ahead on the presumption in favour of sustainable development. Freshwater you are not the only ones on the Island having your boundaries extended, suck it up the same as the rest of us have to.
Totally agree with you Dizzydotty
Of course the so-called ‘Island Plan’ does not reflect the wishes of residents.
The IoW Council are only interested in how many houses and hutches they can cram onto this Island to increase their Council Tax take. They completely forget that the total population of the Island is LESS a vast number of ‘mainland’ towns and cities, and yet we are burdened with supporting a COUNTY Council!
Brilliant, why can’t these people get it through top the County Council… Leave green fields alone !! These mainland firms do not care where they build, or propose to build.. they like the Council, just want money !!
Totally agree they certainly don’t care about they island
sorry not top the County but to the County Council.. I would love to know where the people that propose to buy ALL these new homes across the Island, as to where are they going to work… If mainly going to be commuters, then should they not build a tunnel across Solent first ?? There are not enough ferries at the moment.. imagine with another 15,000 plus people.. wanting to cross…????
they wont be wanting work they will a be 2rd homes or for retirees
Developing on greenfields is so bizarre to me in time when we all need to fight climate change, especially given how car-dependant the nation is. Something has to change, we can’t eat more lands just due to artificial house targets and people feeling they have a right to pour concrete everywhere just to ride a car. That’s just not sustainable.
It’s not a plan. If it was a plan they could justify 252 houses on greenfield in Freshwater.
But they can’t cos it’s not a plan.
It’s just an accommodation of developers’ housing wishes.
You are quite right, its just forward planning in line with government guidelines. I would imagine most of us will be long gone before our fields are covered with houses.
Good for them. For as long as I can remember, greenfield sites have been protected, on the mainland, so I presume the same applied here on the island. Now, Boris wants to build, build, build, as he says, so building on these greenfield sites no longer matters.
Bog off Boris and leave our countryside alone.
Yes, and stop ALL imagration,
And encourage people of all class and gender and race, to stop having so many babies.
The Island is full.
The UK is full.
The World is full.
(You would think that all these Eton bods would be more intelligent).
Hopefully some of the toffs buying the mega-expensive eyesores on the way to Alum Bay etc will be Dentists and Doctors. Oh no, that’s no good as they will have their practices on the mainland and use their palaces here as second homes.
We desperately need to keep West Wight and as much of the rest of the Wight as rural and as unspoiled as possible. Who is all this building for? Mostly they will not be affordable housing, as that does not give the profits that the building companies want. They will be for second homes. I am not against these in general, but they add little to the local economy. The huge majority of working people do not want to live on the Island because of the cost of travel across the Solent and jobs are limited on the Island. That speaks for itself as to why. Therefore, who are these houses for? Keep the IW beautiful and eco friendly.
Whilst I agree that why is we have to build more houses for what most likely be people from the mainland I do not see why the ‘Nimbys’ are more or less saying not in Freshwater but do it elsewhere. If homes have to be built and I am saying have to be for legal / the government reasons then I am afraid if the powers that be say for argument sake say Freshwater then so be it. I live in Ryde we have an issue with the Penny feathers development, guaranteed that will go ahead and won’t be anything like the plans
and where is the sausage man?
Hiding till its all over and done with.