Bohemia Village Voice  Bohemia Village Voice

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Developers threaten peace of London Road glen

Ann Bloomfield & Anthony Bradnum in the Glen.

Ann Bloomfield & Anthony Bradnum in the Glen.

One of Bohemia’s last remaining green spaces could all but disappear if plans submitted to Hastings planning board are approved. At one time the Glen, situated between London Road and Woodland Vale Road, was a substantial area of wetland and ancient woodland, home to a thriving population of badgers, frogs and other wildlife. The land was subject to a planning permission dating from 1989, enabling the then-owner to build in the valley at the bottom of the Glen on condition that the land at the west end of the plot, adjacent to 185 London Road, would be left untouched.
 The land was later obtained by Steve Williams, whose company, WAC Contractors, is based in Pett. Having already completed a block of flats along Woodland Vale Road in 2002, Mr Williams submitted an application to build a substantial block along the London Road frontage. After this application was turned down on various grounds, Mr Williams proceeded to build a substantial block of flats on the valley floor. These were finished in 2005, under the terms of the existing 1989 permission.  Now two applications have been submitted to develop the London Road frontage – one to rescind the covenant in the 1989 permission which prohibits development of any more of the land than has already been built upon; and another to build a block of 14 flats, with underground parking, along London Road.
 Among the many objections this proposal has attracted are letters from Ann Bloomfield of Friends of the Glen and Anthony Bradnum, acting chair of the Southwater Area Residents’ Association. Friends of the Glen was set up in 2004 to try to preserve what remains of this once fairly substantial wild area. Ann Bloomfield told the Voice, ‘Originally, the Friends campaigned to save the wetland on the valley floor, a valuable habitat for rare toads and newts. The developer began talking to us about building on the London Road frontage providing he left the valley floor as it was. But his plan for the London Road development was much too large – over twice the size of the current proposal – and of course, along with others, the Friends objected. So Mr Williams went ahead and built on the valley floor, and a precious resource was lost. Now, if he succeeds in building on the London Road land, what remains of the Glen will be effectively destroyed.’
 An ecological assessment commissioned by the developer argues that ‘no species or habitats of significant ecological value will be significantly impacted as part of the proposed development’. However, Anthony Bradnum begs to differ. ‘There has already been significant loss of habitat, including several mature trees, after two clearances Mr Williams’s men carried out in 2002 and 2005. There is also a large badger sett further down the Glen, and if this development goes ahead the badgers will effectively be landlocked. Their foraging area has been greatly diminished by the development on the valley floor.’
 Anthony believes it is no accident that the Victorians left this sharply sloping site alone. ‘It’ll be a very difficult site to develop, for a number of reasons. If he’s refused permission, we’d like to urge Mr Williams to leave the land to regenerate, and fence it off to prevent the fly-tipping that has happened in the past.’
 Local councillor Andrew Cartwright agrees. ‘Maybe some educational purpose could be found for the Glen – a space where local children could go and learn about the badgers and the wildlife – along similar lines to Brock’s Home Park beside Lidl.’ [see BVV issue 38, 23 Sept 2006]
 Local Councillor and Deputy Mayor Vivienne Bond is also disappointed that the London Road site is again under threat of development. ‘I certainly support the Friends in the campaign to keep this bit of green space. Should the application come to the planning board, I’ll be speaking against it.’
 In the meantime, Ann is also keen to point out the Friends’ willingness to manage the land themselves. ‘We’re already clearing and managing those bits of the Glen he doesn’t own. We’ll do whatever we can to keep this bit of green space.’

STOP PRESS
The Council Planning Board, meeting on the 14th June 2007, has refused permission for the London Road development on various grounds. Well done, the Friends!

View across the Glen from Nightingale Walk to 185 London Road.

View across the Glen from Nightingale Walk to 185 London Road.

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