52960

Email from Rob Rose, Chair of Protect Wellesbourne

From: "Rob Rose" <protect@wellesbourne-business.co.uk>
To: "Richard HARDWICK" <rch@skynet.be>
Subject: RE: 52960 re: Protecting Wellesbourne
Date: 03 April 2010 10:49

Richard

Thanks for your email with your concerns over the HRI site at Wellesbourne.

You will see from our minutes taken last October, during our
meeting with Colon Staves of SDC, that the Council will not favour
any commercial or residential development of this site.

    ( note added by RCH: the minutes are at
        http://wellesbourne-business.co.uk/WellesBus1/UserFiles/file/October_8th_final_meeting_notes.pdf

Colin spoke at length on this site as one or two of our members felt that a
new secondary school for the area could possibly be sited there, as
Wellesbourne is now the primary supplier of children to the current Kineton
School. There are plans to resite this school within Kineton at this time.

He was very keen on only promoting expansion that was directly connected
with research and or education, speaking very strongly against commercial
exploitation, such as warehousing or storage. There are also concerns over
surface water run off and flooding.

In light of your comments I would not be surprised if SDC have been
approached informally to test the water. The planners will not discuss any
such informal prospective plans with any third parties until the application
is lodged formally. This works fine for everyone until the 'jungle drums
start beating', in our case we had heard about various applications from
numerous unofficial sources. The undercurrent of rumours with the subsequent
official letter showing that just Kineton Rd & Redhill sites being put
forward created a healthy backlash against the planners, sufficient for them
to take stock of their initial proposal.

However, as Colin was well prepared on the WELL1 site, I would think that
negotiations could possibly have taken place prior to our meeting. This
would also explain the firmness in his objection to any other kind of
expansion there.

I will send your email out to our committee for comment and will also post a
short news update with your link for public attention.

I will certainly keep you posted with anything that we discover and hope
that you will reciprocate.

Kind Regards

Rob Rose
Chair of Protect Wellesbourne

-----Original Message-----
From: Richard HARDWICK [mailto:rch@skynet.be]
Sent: 03 April 2010 06:22
To: protect@wellesbourne-business.co.uk
Subject: 52960 re: Protecting Wellesbourne

>     +--------------------------------------------------------+
>                                    Bruxelles, le 03-04-2010
>
> Dear  Wellesbourne Business
>     I am the webmaster of the nvrs-hri google group, writing
>     to thank you for your pages.
>
>     I have just posted a page on our site
> http://groups.google.com/group/nvrs-hri-gg/web/proposed-development-site
>     linking back to yours.
>
>     The reason for our interest in the SDC "Core Strategy" is that
>     we are hearing rumours that the University has plans, once it
>     has closed WHRI, to develop rather more than what is
>     currently shown on the map.
>
>     Of course all sorts of rumours fly around in times like these,
>     and we have no hard evidence either for or against. But it
>     would not be the first time that a University has tried to take
>     over an agricultural establishment and develop its land for
>     home building  (we know what happened to Wye College
>     http://www.save-wye.org/); and the farms of several other former
>     ARC Research Stations are now just housing estates.
>
>     So I was just wondering if you have heard anything similar?
>     If so, would it be worth launching a query under the Freedom of
>     Information Act?
>
>     Best regards
>     Yrs
>     Richard Hardwick
>    +----------------------------------------------------------+
>    ?                  email: RCH@SKYNET.BE                   ?
>    +----------------------------------------------------------+
----- End of Original Message -----