Dunchurch fears for village green as housing plans take new twist - The Rugby Observer

Dunchurch fears for village green as housing plans take new twist

Rugby Editorial 10th Jul, 2016 Updated: 27th Oct, 2016   0

DUNCHURCH residents fear developers want to ‘take a slice’ out of their village green, in the latest twist of the proposed Ashlawn Fields housing saga.

Revised plans to build up to 860 houses on Ashlawn Fields include a proposal to convert land in front of the famous Lord John Scott Statue into an extra traffic lane.

Sara Herrington, press officer for protest group Stop Ashlawn Road Development (SARD), said the centre of Dunchurch was a conservation area and the plans must be opposed.

She said: “The developers’ latest proposals would harm the setting of the Lord John Scott statue and appear unsafe.




“We urge all Dunchurch residents to make their views known on this proposal by e-mailing the planning inspectorate at [email protected].”

The original plan was unanimously rejected by Rugby Borough Council’s planning committee on the grounds it would lead to an unacceptable increase in traffic in the area, particularly at the Dunchurch crossroads.


The Council also ruled the developers had failed to provide the necessary infrastructure to mitigate for the extra traffic and the accompanying increased air pollution.

The developers’ proposal for appeal states they ‘strongly dispute’ the council’s findings, saying “residual impacts cannot be described as adverse or severe”.

It continues: “The Council do not allege there would be adverse impacts in respect of highway safety or air quality at any other location. Further, it does not allege any other adverse impacts would arise at the crossroads.

“Again, the Council do not allege any failing in the infrastructure proposed to mitigate the impact on highway safety or air quality in respect of any other location.

“The Appellants will demonstrate these impacts are mitigated by the proposed improvements.”

The developers had previously proposed a mini-gyratory and extra white lines at the Dunchurch junction to mitigate traffic problems.

Public responses to the new plan must be received by the planning inspectorate by July 20.

A public inquiry into the development will be held at the end of January 2017 – to which SARD has been granted full rights to call and cross-examine witnesses.

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