Homes plan will be a disaster

Your headlines say it all (First Look At Designs For ‘Garden Suburb’, Kentish Gazette, May 26/KCC Must Focus On Potential Traffic Nightmare, Kentish Gazette, May 26). This development will adversely the world heritage status of what is arguably the most important Cathedral city in England.

It will use good quality agricultural land, instead of brownfield land.

The historic setting of Canterbury, which has had some protection for many years, will be ruined.

The areas of traffic pollution in the city will expand and increase the very real dangers to public health.

The tallest of the buildings will be clearly visible from many viewpoints, and will diminish the Cathedral and the historic centre.

Historic England, the Cathedral authority and local amenity bodies all object to the proposals, but the city council is being pressed by central government to produce more housing, much of which, we fear, will not be available for local people.

Regrettably, the current planning laws contain no protection for either Cathedral cities or historic towns, which are expected to have as much extra housing as any other city or town.

The character and very nature of Canterbury will be changed for ever if this development goes ahead.

As an example of misleading publicity, the developers originally showed on their plans that the small part of the site on which they now wish to build 140 houses would be kept as an open space.

The city council assured us at a meeting that they would ensure that space remained. We await with interest how that particular aspect will be resolved. Barrie Gore Canterbury committee for CPRE Kent, Queen’s Head House, Ashford Road, Charing.