The Magic Roundabout

Readers of a certain age may recall this children's TV programme from the 1960's which acquired a cult following amongst the young and not so young alike.

We were reminded of this long forgotten classic late last week with the announcement of  revisions to the plans for the George & Dragon site.

In an earlier post, we reported that the Borough aborculturist had slapped a tree preservation order on the whole site.  It turns out that our suspicion that this might lead to design changes was right.  The owners responded immediately with a revised site plan which now includes the trees and Stafford BC has now sent out another letter asking for our comments.  We appear to be going round in circles.

• First there was the application to build flats
• Then there was the announcement that there would be a revision and that we would have to send in more letters 
• Next, the application was withdrawn
• Then another application was submitted
• Now this application has been revised before it has been fully assessed

In our view, we are being presented with a moving target, a point which we have taken up with Stafford Borough Councillor Richard Oldfield.   Not only that but the plans are now out of step with the design statement which has not been resubmitted.  What we can learn from this is that we need to be vigilant and keep up the pressure so, if you haven't written in yet, now might be a good time.

Anyway, as far as the revisions themselves go, we are hard pushed to spot the differences between the original and the new version, a point not helped by the omission of any kind of explanation.  Close inspection, however, reveals the presence of more trees on the revised plans suggesting that the owners have indeed responded to the tree preservation order.

Unfortunately, it also reveals something else.  Each of the eight houses is now shown with THREE car parking spaces in addition to a garage rather than two plus garage that were originally designed.  This means, dear readers, that there could be as many as 32 vehicles on this site - almost as congested as the onerous block of flats now thankfully consigned to the dustbin of planning history.

One of the major objections to any development of the pub site has always been the adverse impact on the already dangerous traffic conditions.  We learnt recently that there have been five fatalities in this area during the past 14 years.   Is it really in the interests of road safety to add another 32 vehicles?

If there is any good news at all about the revised application it is that we now have another two weeks in which to object.  As we said earlier, if you haven't written in yet there is no time like the present.

Florence, Dougal and Brian, we miss you!

The Empire Strikes Back

Events took an unexpected turn,  this week, when opposition to the planning application emerged from the most unlikely of sources: none other than Stafford Borough Council itself who have slapped a tree preservation order on the whole site!

The full implications of this are not totally clear yet but it is not unreasonable to assume that the design of the development might have to be reconsidered.  The current plans appear to involve the removal of some the existing trees which presumably now can't happen. Watch this space! 

AND DON'T FORGET TO SEND IN YOUR LETTERS OF OBJECTION!

Parish Council Planning Committee Meeting

There is a meeting of the Parish Planning Committee next Tuesday, 24th November at which, we are reliably informed, 09/12885/FUL will be discussed.  The meeting is open to members of the public.  Unfortunately, we will not be able to attend due to business commitments but we urge all to do so.  The meeting will be held in the Village Hall and starts at 7pm.

What Next?

Having studied the new proposals in some depth, we have to admit to being somewhat confused by the basic designs.  Three storey "dwellings" with five bedrooms?  And only two day rooms on the ground floor?  We would have thought that for a modern house to be desirable in the current climate there would have to be at least three ground floor rooms ie. a kitchen, lounge and dining room.

Call us paranoid if you like but none of this made sense to our way of thinking until someone else dropped another variable into the mix.  What if, at some future time, having won permission to develop these "dwellings" the owners decided to convert them to flats?  Eight dwellings with three storeys = 24 flats.  Which is, purely coincidentally, the same number of cars the application makes provision for!

We've checked with the Borough Council who advise that another planning application would be required if the owners wanted to undertake such a conversion.  However, by that time the pub would be long gone and the "dwellings" erected.  And where would the residents be then poor things?

Of course, all of this is purely hypothetical and just another example of our weary ramblings .....

Baffled and Bamboozled?

Anyone reading the new application might be somewhat baffled by some of the statements it contains.  For example, it claims to have followed recommendations made by the local Parish Council.  We had a long chat with Councillor Joy Bennett about this recently.  Councillors did indeed meet with the owners and gave opinions about the proposals.  The only recommendation they made was that the owners should present their intentions to the local community at an open morning (there is an earlier blog post about this).  The owners chose to disregard this recommendation.

Another claim made in the Design Statement (page 7) is that "the new solution is based on general views provided by the community and parish as a whole."  Did they ask your opinion?  We don't know of anyone who has been consulted or provided information to the owners or planners.  If they had taken any notice of local opinion then perhaps they might have given it up as a bad job and looked for somewhere more appropriate to develop their flats.

LET US KNOW WHAT YOU THINK!  LEAVE A COMMENT.

(You won't have to give any personal information if you do).

The Full Application

Well, it's all up there now.  Full details of the new application are now available on the Stafford Borough Council website.  If you want to take a look at all the documents, you can use the link in the side panel on this page.  For those of you who don't then here is a quick summary.

The application proposes eight "dwellings" (houses to you and me).   There are two rows comprising four houses in each, set either side of an access road which would run from Stone Road to the rear of the site (what is currently the car park).  The access road would be "unadopted" which presumably means that the Borough Council won't have any responsibility for its upkeep.

The houses are three storeys high.  The groundfloor consists of an integral garage, kitchen/ diner, utility and lounge.

The first floor comprises three bedrooms and a bathroom.  On the second floor (ie. the roof void) there are two more bedrooms making five bedrooms in all.

And that's about the size of it.  We are currently studying these plans in detail.  In the meantime, if you have any thoughts you want to share, either make a comment or drop us a line using the link on the right hand side of the page.

One final thing, according to the Staffsbc website, consultation letters have been sent out so we should be getting them any day now.

Happy reading.

New Planning Application

The new planning application in respect of the George & Dragon has now been submitted. It's for "eight dwelling units".  Unfortunately, there are no plans or other details on the Staffordbc website so we'll have to hold our breath for a little while longer.

The new reference number is 09/12885/FUL.  Use the link in the panel on the right-hand side to go straight to the application.

It's All Gone Quiet Over There

And it has.  Even the light has gone out!  Not a great deal to report at the moment.  We are still waiting for the owners to submit their planning application for the "housing scheme" (we still think that sounds ominous).  However, that doesn't mean to say that there isn't work to be done.  We have a few irons in the fire that we are working on at the moment and will reveal in due course. 

In the meantime, keep those pencils sharpened!

Pub History - Can You Help?

Many residents feel that the George & Dragon is of particular historical interest and should be preserved.  There are few old public buildings in the area and it forms an important part of the village's history and local  heritage.

Unfortunately, there is not a lot of published information about either the pub or the village which would substantiate this argument.

Do you know anything about the history of the George & Dragon?  Have you got any really old photographs of the interior or exterior (earlier perhaps than the example given in the archive) ?  The Blog would be very interested to hear from any residents who can provide any material about the pub and its history.  If you do, then please drop me a line by clicking on the link in the Taking Action column on the right hand side of this page.

An Interesting Development

It seems that the current planning application, 09/12464/FUL, the one we have all been fighting, is to be withdrawn.  PA Taylor Plans, acting on behalf of the owners, have written to Stafford Borough Council advising them of their intention to do this. 

However, let's not get too carried away with what at first sight looks like welcome news.  They are intending to submit a new application based on a "housing scheme" with fewer units.  Quite what this will look like is anybody's guess and we'll just have to await developments. The reconsultation exercise will not start until the current application has been withdrawn and a new one submitted.

News from the Coal Face

Finally, some news from the Borough Council!  There is to be a reconsultation exercise in respect of the revised plans.  However, it seems that another change to the application is on the way and John Holmes has not yet organised anything. 

One thing we need to watch out for, though, is that it looks like we'll have just 14 days in which to respond.  Look out for those letters in the post!

All Quiet on the Western Front

In the absence of any news from Stafford Borough Council about the revised plans, it was very reassuring to get an email from Parish Councillor Joy Bennett.   Joy advised that the matter had been discussed at the previous evening's meeting of the Parish Council but that our Borough Councillor had been unable to provide a definitive answer.  She recommends waiting until we get our next letter from Stafford BC and then having the application called in again.

Interestingly, Joy was also at the meeting along with Ian Parry when the owners presented the new plans.  Apparently, her suggestion that an opening morning be held at which the plans could be presented to residents was rejected on the grounds that the owners had been verbally attacked by some residents.

Revised Plans Published

The revised plans for the pub have now been published on the Staffordbc web site.  As far as I can tell the following changes have been  made:

• There are now four separate blocks of flats each comprising two storeys
• Two of the blocks run adjacent to the Leadenhall Lane end
• A longer block runs the length of what is currently the car park to the rear of the pub
• The fourth runs alongside the field to the north of the pub
  
• The four blocks surround a central parking area which lets out directly onto Stone Road
  
• There is a total of 20 flats altogether with parking for 27 vehicles

However, only the plans themselves have been published.  There is no accompanying text by way of explanation!   Not only that but John Holmes has yet to advise how the submission of the revised plans affects the overall consultation process.   I for one shall be writing to voice my protest at this lack of communication.

As reported in an earlier post, Ian Parry recently met the owners to discuss the revised plans.  Councillor Parry advised them to hold a public consultation exercise to explore what sort of proposals residents might find acceptable.  That meeting took place on Tuesday of this week.  The revised plans were published today, just two days later. This must surely further demonstrate the lack of concern the owners have for local sensitivities and sound common sense.

Ian Parry Meets the Owners

County Councillor Ian Parry met the owners of the George & Dragon last Tuesday evening.  The purpose of the meeting, held at the request of the owners, was to discuss their revised plans (earlier posts refer).  The Blog doesn't have full details at this stage, but it appears that the new plans cater for 20 flats rather than the original 26.

So what's changed?  It's still a block of flats, it's still not appropriate for the area, it's still dangerous and it's still not a good use of the site.

Ian Parry is still opposed to the plans and advised the owners to hold a public consultation exercise to explore other options which residents may find more acceptable.  That should be worth waiting for!!

Keep those Pencils Sharpened!

It is very much looking like the applicant is going to submit a revised proposal.  County Councillor Ian Parry has confirmed that the applicants are in the process of revising their plans at the moment. Quite what this means in terms of any future consultation exercise is not yet clear.  We are awaiting a response from Stafford BC to establish whether the current process will simply continue or if it will mean starting all over again.  I'll keep you posted as soon as we hear anything.

More Developments on the Way?

In an earlier post,  I mentioned that Bill Cash had written to Stafford Borough Council supporting our objections to the planning application.  John Holmes, Development Control Manager at the council, has now replied to Bill's letter in which he says:

"It is believed that the developer intends to submit significant amendments to this application.  It is understood that these amendments are intended to be made to the layout of the site but not the overall character of the scheme".

The letter continues:

"If an amended scheme is submitted  then a further comprehensive publicity and consultation exercise will occur.  Any representations received in response to this exercise will be taken into account in the determination of the planning application".

We are currently seeking clarification of what form the additional exercise will take.  In the meantime, better keep those pencils, sharpened folks!  We may have more writing to do.

English Heritage

As some of you may know, English Heritage have  been giving consideration to declaring the George & Dragon a listed building.  They have now finished their enquiries and have made a recommendation to the Department for Communities, Media and Sport (DCMS).  We await their decision with baited breath!  Rest assured, as soon as I hear anything I'll post it here.

Interestingly, it seems that two residents made separate applications independently to English Heritage.  I know who one of them is but not the other.  If the other applicant would like to drop me a line, I'd be delighted to swap notes.

More Political Support

Our Staffordshire County Councillor, Ian Parry, has now formally joined us in objecting to the planning application.  In his letter to Stafford Borough, Councillor Parry objects to  the over density of population that the proposals would lead to.  He goes on to express concerns over the proximity to the busy road junction.  Finally, he notes that there is universal disapproval by local residents and no signficant demand for housing in this part of the borough anyway.

Well said indeed.

Some Common Sense at Last?

More good news for those opposed to the planning application has come in the form of  a consultation response from Staffordshire Highways Authority.   They have recommended that the planning application be refused on the grounds that:

• There is inadequate provision for parking and turning within the site
• The development will result in an increased likelihood of "highway danger" due to vehicles "waiting on the public highway ... and manoeuvring ... ".
• The application fails to provide sufficient information that adequate vehicular visibility can be achieved
  

A statement of the obvious if ever there was one but at least now it's official.

More Opposition to the Proposals

Staffordshire Wildlife Trust have joined us in opposing the planning application. According to their letter on the Stafford Borough Council website, the application has ecological implications on what is an area of natural woodland and protected species of wildlife.  The trust has consequently requested an extended phase 1 habitat survey.

It seems that this time of year is not ideal for a survey to be carried out and a more detailed survey may need to be done next summer.

The Trust has submitted a holding objection due to the need for further information.