The Berkeley Bunnies (BB’s) burrowing (or not) into the Woolmead site in East Street, Farnham – have had a change of pocket about providing sufficient car parking spaces to serve the development.
Not satisfied with getting away with providing NO affordable housing in the East Street development, or off-site affordable housing either, the BB’s now want to drop 61 car of the promised 141 parking spaces in the basement car park. But has thrown a crumb of comfort our way by offering 30 12-month season tickets for council-owned car parks – thereby reducing parking for Farnham’s residents!
Why? OH, Why? We hear you cry?
SIMPLES…
Because the developer claimed the scheme was no longer viable – and that was long before the Coronavirus was even a little gleam in the eye of a Wahun bat, let alone toasted and roasted for a Chinamans’ lunch!
When consent was granted the BB’s were given considerable latitude by Waverley Planners in its provision of residential development. If it had stuck to the rules, there should have been more larger units and some affordable homes.
However, the BB’s argued the location was more suitable for smaller homes – so dropped the provision of 20/30 per cent affordable homes, claiming it wasn’t viable. Why? Because it would only make £10.597m in profit – poor bunnies. Not enough profit = less lettuce!
So everyone rolled over – and some fell out – and there were ten in the bed and the officers’ said – roll over, roll over – you know how the song goes…
So you would have thought that having ridden roughshod over the planners once the BB’s insatiable appetite for lettuces might have been satisfiedl But Oh! No! Now they want to slash the parking provision by 50 per cent. Which doesn’t meat either Waverley’s of Surrey |County Council’s parking standards.
By 50 per cent we hear you cry – WHY?
FOR VIABILITY REASONS THAT’S WHY? And – that was before the downturn in the housing and retail market and the economic abyss we are heading for. So we ask the BB’s – what do you intend to ask Waverley Planners for next?
NO PARKING AT ALL and some HUTCHES?
The planning application will be considered at a remote meeting of the Western Planning Committee on ZOOM on Tuesday, June 26 – and you won’t be surprised to hear that the officers are rolling over once again, aided and abetted by their highwaymen friends at Surrey by recommending approval.
Ah well! It’s an ill wind and all that. At least it will prevent any of the one bed flat owners from owning a car; will help the BERKELEY bunnies get an extra helping of lettuce – and line the Pidgley pockets into the bargain.
As for Waverley’s planning experts. The Farnham Society comment in its objection letter says it all –
If this condition to provide adequate parking in the original planning application is dumped the residents of Farnham will have no faith in Waverley’s Planning Department.
Post COVID-19 the Waverley Web cannot help wondering how many other developers will jump on the BB’s bandwagon that is now rolling across the borough to reduce their obligations under previous planning consents?
This cynical approach to manipulating the planning system is all too typical of large developers:
Step one: Gain initial planning permission.
Step two: Come back with changes
The speed at which Berkeley Homes demolished the Woolmead and created the large heaps of rubble for all of us to see, was suspicious and we were all right to suspect something fishy was going on.
Would a planning application with the revised car parking spaces have been given permission in the first place? NO (so simples planning committee members)
It will all play out on the You Tube webcast – so watch out councillors debate this one and see which ones give into Blackmail.
Western Planning meeting to determine application is on Tuesday 23 June at 6pm. Woolmead second on the agenda.
Couldn’t agree more… It is shocking and simply shouldn’t be allowed. If an individual applied for planning with conditions applied, and they strayed from those they would be hammered. BB seem to think that they can get away with anything, as have other Developers claiming they cannot afford S106 Payments until all 55 homes are occupied!
http://planning360.waverley.gov.uk/planning/search-applications?civica.query.FullTextSearch=alfold#VIEW?RefType=GFPlanning&KeyNo=439812&KeyText=Subject
It is quite frankly a JOKE and if Passed I hope there is a huge outcry in Farnham… Over to you!
Huzzah – The greedy B******s didn’t get away with it and Well done you lot in FARNHAM now try and relate some of your comments about the rubbish Transport infrastructure – to what it is like here in the EAST of the Borough – For christs sakes if you think yours is bad Look at OURS!!
please smell the coffee and see what is going on on here outside of FARNHAM!