On your Marks Jet Set Go at Farnborough Airport?

Or not, if Your Waverley has anything to do with it.

At Tuesday’s council meeting, almost everyone agreed to support Rushmore Borough Council’s efforts to stop the expansion of Farnborough Airport.

However, a handful of councillors believed the council should keep its nose out of the stuff of other people’s lives!

Debating a proposal from Greens Cllr Steve Williams, the council heard that flights by private jets are expected to increase dramatically if the new airport owners get the go-ahead. He accepted there was some local benefit to businesses but believed the harm outweighed those benefits in a climate emergency.

Flights are predicted to increase from the existing 19,000 p.a. to between 50 and 70,000 flights per year, bringing the accompanying noise and pollution to towns and villages around Farnham and Aldershot.

Cllr Williams claimed that most flights by this elite transport carried 2.5 passengers, mainly on their way to the ski slopes or the Mediterranean sun. Often, planes carried just their pets. He asked If it was a priority to transport Fido to join your family sojourn to Italy.

However, the Waverley Web knows of instances where sofas were flown from one billionaire home to another.

Councillors recognised that the expansion of both Gatwick and Heathrow was becoming increasingly likely, and its towns and villages would experience increasing noise and pollution – but these civil aircraft carry thousands of passengers. The local economy and jobs benefited enormously.

There was strong opposition from some who registered their dislike of getting involved in another borough’s issues, regardless of whether it was a neighbour or how much it affected Waverley residents. Some said the motion smacked of jealousy of the wealthy, who could use their money to travel how they liked when they liked. It was their money, their choice!

Some opposed any suggestion of using its officers’ time to support its objection to expansion through legal means. Now, due to local government reorganisation, was not a time to spend taxpayers’ money. Rushmore would refuse the application on planning grounds, it would go to appeal, and the Secretary of State would likely finally decide.

Cllr Carole Cockburn said Waverley was right to object to increased noise and pollution but should leave it to Rushmore Council to fight it out.

Cllr Jane Austin said Waverley’s residents cared more about jobs and growth than noise or pollution; Waverley had no control over the situation, nor should it.

Cllr Williams’ motion was approved with 26 votes to seven against it, with two abstentions.

Cllrs cannot change or contribute anything by abstaining.

The motion:

Environmental and Social Impact: The proposed expansion of Farnborough Airport is expected to increase the number of flights, leading to heightened noise pollution and reduced air quality, particularly affecting residents in the North West of Waverley. The environmental impact of aviation, particularly private jet travel, is substantial, with per capita carbon emissions from private jet use significantly exceeding those of commercial airline passengers.

Disproportionate Benefits and Costs: Private jet travel remains accessible only to a small percentage of the population, while the broader public, including Waverley residents, bears the environmental and social costs of increased air traffic. Expansion of the airport will primarily benefit a limited group of affluent travellers while imposing additional burdens on local communities. Climate Commitments:

Waverley Borough Council has declared a climate emergency and is committed to a net zero goal by 2030. Supporting the expansion of Farnborough Airport would be contrary to these commitments and to national and international climate goals aimed at reducing aviation emissions.

This Council opposes the expansion of Farnborough Airport due to its negative impact on the environment, air quality, noise pollution, and contribution to carbon emissions.

It expresses support for the campaign opposing the expansion and calls upon Rushmoor Borough Council to reject the planning application for the proposed expansion.  Requests of the Assistant Director, Legal Services and Information Governance, that Waverley Borough Council’s legal team explore potential legal avenues for challenging the expansion of Farnborough Airport, including judicial review or other appropriate legal mechanisms.

It urges the government to adopt stricter regulations on private aviation to limit its environmental impact and ensure that the aviation sector contributes to national carbon reduction targets by adopting measures to reduce rather than increase the volume of air traffic. Council resolves to require the Leader of the Council to communicate the text of this motion and provide copies of such communication to all Waverley Borough Councillors to:

The Leader of Rushmoor Borough Council, Councillor Gareth Williams  Local Members of Parliament, Jeremy Hunt MP, Zoe Franklin MP, and Greg Stafford MP  Secretary of State for Transport, Heidi Alexander, MP  Secretary of State for Energy Security & Net Zero, Ed Milliband, MP  The Chief Executive of Farnborough Airport, Simon Geere  Campaign groups opposing the expansion, ensuring collaboration and support for community-led opposition efforts  The clerks of all town and parish councils.

Waverley Leisure Centres are experiencing a boost in visitor numbers despite some challenges.

According to data published this week, leisure Centres around the borough have had a “fantastic” quarter. That was the Winter quarter, including Christmas, when centres were closed.

Despite having more competition on its doorstep in Farnham, technical problems in Cranleigh fording closure to swimmers, and everyday winter pressures, Despote’s business is booming.

The council puts this down to an increase in partnership working and marketing, which has steadily improved visitor numbers.

Planning permission for Cranleigh’s new ENERGY-SAVING leisure centre was recently granted.

Cranleigh’s new energy-efficient leisure centre, gets the go-ahead,

 

Waverley Planners has given the Pegasus Group the go-ahead for an illuminated Advertisement Sign for a new Domino’s takeaway at 222 High Street, Cranleigh, as approved by planning application WA/2024/01369.

So that you know, Cranleigh Villagers.  As far as Waverley Planners are concerned,  Cranleigh is now a Town!

The site is located within Cranleigh Town Centre High Street, as detailed in the map excerpt below from the Town Centres Retail Study Update produced by Waverley Borough Council.

 

 The new business’s site is within a designated Town Centre, near several other retail, food, and service outlets, including The Curry Inn at 214-216 High Street, Glamorous Nails at 194 High Street, and Village Grill at 252 High Street.

Waverley says other outlets already display a volume of signage that incorporates several different illumination methods to ensure they remain visible. Externally illuminated fascia signage (using spotlights) was previously in place at the application site to accommodate the previous occupants, Village Carpets and Flooring.  The site is not statutorily listed but is located within Cranleigh Conservation Area. The closest listed building is Cranleigh War Memorial, 200m east of the application site.

Bye-bye, Milford Golf Course. Hello, bricks and mortar, as Tim and Isobel House give up their fight over a covenant that has prevented development there for eight years.

They said:

So, we are afraid that after having spent an enormous amount of our time and money in the last 8 years opposing the development on MGC we felt compelled to bring an end to the litigation. Life is too short and there are other places to live.

 After years of battle between residents, Waverley Planners, and developers over a scheme to build 200 homes on Milford Golf Course, development is about to tee off.

Along with another 350 on the remainder of Milford Golf Club to the east of Station Lane, where it is believed Redrow intends to build, this would signal the closure of the golf club and the release of land from the Green Belt. This would result in 540 new dwellings on each side of Station Lane between the River Ock and Milford Staton. In addition, 214 new dwellings have already been consented at Secretts Hurst Farm.

Is yet another development accessing a narrow country road about to happen? Will commuters on their way to the station soon be playing dodgems with HGVs and increased traffic, as they are already doing in Milford village?  

“Has Milford Golf Course sold developers a Bogey?”

Mr and Mrs Tim House wrote this to their supporters.

This is our final update on the Milford Golf Course development, and we are sorry to say an unwelcome one because we expect the development of 190 dwellings now to go ahead on the west of Station Lane.

Over the weekend we signed a confidential settlement agreement with the developer ending the proceedings that the developer brought against us to overturn our covenant. The trial was due to commence in the High Court tomorrow.

We and our barrister were very confident that we would have won this battle in court, convincingly, but the stark reality is that Milford will be heavily developed over the next few years and the development site will be built on at some density so, although we would have won this battle, winning the longer war was beyond our control given WBC’s determination to see this area developed. We did not think we could achieve the final vindication of having the development site returned to Green Belt in the current political environment given the pressing need for housing. So, we have taken the pragmatic option of a settlement that leaves us in a position to move freely in the future if, as we now expect, the development will proceed and its impact on us is intolerable.

Three things in particular influenced our final decision:

1.⁠ ⁠We believe Crown Golf has devised a plan with another national house builder (Redrow) to build at least 350 houses on the remainder of Milford Golf Club to the east of Station Lane. We believe WBC’s planning officers have received a formal presentation on this plan and given a favourable indication of likely support. This development would involve the closure of the Golf Club and the release of the land from Green Belt. This would mean a total of 540 (190 +350) new dwellings being built along either side of Station Lane between the River Ock and Milford station. This is in addition to the 214 new dwellings at Secretts, Hurst Farm which now have full planning permission.

2.⁠ ⁠The new Government Planning Framework which came into effect in December 2024 makes local involvement in these decisions and opposition to them even more difficult, especially if the local planning officers are development minded and developer friendly, as WBC’s plainly are in relation to Milford.

3.⁠ ⁠Other local landowners in the immediate vicinity have put their land up for consideration for development in the next iteration of the Local Plan. Extension of the Milford settlement boundary south towards Rake Lane and Milford Station, together with the new Government guidance, makes the potential release of this land from Green Belt more likely.

So, we are afraid that after having spent an enormous amount of our time and money in the last 8 years opposing the development on MGC we felt compelled to bring an end to the litigation. Life is too short and there are other places to live.

We remain very grateful nonetheless for your support and we are both extremely sorry not to have been able to find a way to use our legal rights to assist the local community in achieving a more balanced planning outcome for Milford. We feel you have been very let down by successive Heads of Planning at WBC.

We should say that your local ward counsellors, Cllr Maxine Gale and Cllr Phoebe Sullivan, have been exceedingly responsive and supportive in seeking a fair planning outcome for Milford and we wanted to record our gratitude to them.

Yours sincerely

Tim and Isobel House