Object

Site Assessment Pro Formas

Representation ID: 6559

Received: 13/09/2021

Respondent: Teresa Withey

Representation Summary:

1. We are green field site. Why has development not been ear marked for brown field.
2. Duloe village has no pavements. The village is used by countless walkers, cyclists, children of the village and our pets. Development was substantially increase traffic for which there is no adequate infrastructure. The roads are already in an appalling state and we suffer with large scale vehicles trying to drive through Duloe in spite of a warning sign at the A1 bridge that the road is not suitable for it. The road through Duloe is barely wide enough for two standard cars to pass each other depending on the position of the crumbling road edges to the cars in question. There are kids of school age who walk on school on the road. In winter there are no street lights between St Neots and the village - given no pavement its very dangerous- especially if cars increase. Speeding is a significant issue in Duloe due to its proximity to St Neots (drivers cannot be bothered to slow down). Increased vehicles will make this higher risk. MANY of the home owners in this hamlet have cats. Why must we put our beloved animals at risk because you will not build on brown field sites? We moved here and had pets based on a rural existence.
3. People in Duloe use the facilities of St Neots given that it is a mile down the road. So therefore people will be needing things like use of food shops, GP surgeries, vets etc. St Neots is already suffering with these services substantially (overstretched) given the huge development to the East side of St Neots. I have not even been able to get a telephone consult at my doctors for months and any development in St Neots will mean those people will likely register at Lakeside St Neots as their nearest GP. Lakeside doctors surgery is already unable to cope (and has a terrible parking problem all around the surgery area as their on site facilities are inadequate). The linked pharmacy also cannot cope and regularly has huge half hour queues for prescriptions.
4. The development size (total plans) seem bigger than St Neots and yet there are not the local jobs available to go with it.
5. The development will not result in any funding for St Neots town centre which is on its knees (boarded up failed businesses from businesses that had been here for years, a pub that has been empty and undeveloped for more than 20 years due to council wrangling). Unless you want a hairdresser, vape shop or charity shop there is nothing here.
6. Over development will greatly de-value the homes in the villages and make it harder to sell as we will lose what made our homes have their value in the first place i.e. the countryside and unique flora/fauna/wildlife of the area.
7. Our homes will also lose value due to the huge availability of cheaply built property that will flood the market.
8. We currently have an amazing habitat for owls (little and barn), kestrels, kites, sparrowhawk, deer, foxes, bats, badgers, hedgehog and yellow hammer birds. These habitats will be ruined. We also have rare bath asparagus growing in our verges.
9. We have close knit village communities built up the fabric of which will be destroyed by becoming a town.
10. The fields around us are frequently sitting under water/water logged in winter. The ditches often fill and overflow into the road during winter/spring. Any development of the land surrounding Duloe is likely to result in a greatly increased change of flooding to existing properties. There is already a drainage issue which, despite being attended to, remains a problem with smelly sewage in the middle of the village. The water table issue has been getting worse in the last few winters with global warming.
11. The development represents something like a 800 percent increase in the village size which will have a substantial impact on infrastructure, environment, noise and light pollution on an essentially peaceful close knit rural community. This is likely to force out the current occupants of the homes they have lived in as they will want to live in a rural community not a town. Houses rarely come up for sale in Duloe because it offers a particular rural community setting that is incredibly sought after. I know one chap who has lived his whole life here. Our little community will be totally destroyed.
12. Duloe suffers with pretty frequent power cuts. Several per week is not uncommon. Water pressure is also fairly low at times. How will local utilities cope with all these additional dwellings with their power and water requirements when local services do not adequately supply the small number of homes already here?