Rushcliffe Borough Council plan biggest consultation yet on Clifton Pastures Development
The latest stage in this saga is upon us. While RBC still deliberate on Baratts' application for 5,500 houses in Clifton Pastures, from the middle of February everyone in the area referred to as 'Greater Nottingham' will have the chance to comment on the latest Core Strategy document which will form part of the RBC's Local Development Framework. This document specifically mentions Clifton Pastures as a development site for a reduced but still vast number of 4,200 houses, but with more industry. While the format of the consultation is not finally decided, it is likely that each household will receive a 4 page booklet from RBC to which you can comment by letter, email or direct to a website. The Parish Council is entertaining planners from RBC to its main meeting in March as part of an associated 'road show', and following this you may be asked again to make your views known, perhaps with a letter writing campaign, and there will be another public meeting. We understand why you might be reluctant as you have said it all before, but unless you respond at every stage of this development process, you are considered not to care any more. Such is democracy!
As regards the Barratts' application, various press releases from RBC have served to confuse everyone - first they were against it and now they are 'reluctantly' for it - or at least something very like it. This is a retreat, as Trevor Vennett-Smith, our Chairman and Borough Councillor, has said, which is 'faster than the BEF at Dunkirk.' We understand that Barratts have now submitted a new Industrial and Employment Statement (which is just as well given how awful the originals were) and are furiously working on the crucial one, on Transport. We believe their deadline for this is March. We cannot stress how important this is for Gotham: there are only 4 roads in and out of this planned development and the one to the south is Nottingham Road. To further complicate matters, The Highways Agency produced new traffic data for the recent Public Enquiry on the widening of the A453 which did not model Clifton Pastures in enough detail for our liking. In essence, their model stated that such benefit as Gotham would get from losing the 'rat-runners' with the new widened road would be lost to new 'rat-runners' if new developments like Clifton Pastures were built, but it did not consider the Clifton Pastures development specifically. The responsibility for doing this specific and vital modelling falls on, yes, Barratts! And to complete the circle, they are using the Highways Agency computer models to work it all out. We will see what argument they come up with.
The Clifton Pastures development has to be a 'Sustainable Urban Extension'. Barratts have to prove that the local infrastructure can hold the increased traffic and population. No doubt the Parkway railway station and the Tram extension will form part of their argument but they have to show that the widened A453 can take the extra traffic. If there is any kind of fudge and the extra traffic is too much for the road, we know where it will go - through Gotham. The Parish Council will strive to ensure RBC planners take full account of our demands on traffic levels and deal with our case appropriately, but with the pressure they are under for housing provision. we are not that confident.
Please keep your eyes on the press and take whatever chance vou can to have your say!
John Anderson