Is area bearing the brunt for housing?
Charvil: Concern over ‘unfair burden’ of sites for development
Concerns have been raised over sites chosen in Charvil as part of the latest draft local plan update.
In its revised plan, Wokingham Borough Council (WBC) has explained that the strategy proposed in the previous draft local plan, consulted on in 2020, was no longer ‘achievable’ and so a new approach was chosen.
The previous plan proposed to build a total of 160 new homes in Charvil – 85 on land east of Park View Drive North and 75 on land west of Park Lane.
However, the revised strategy now proposes to develop a total of 139 houses, with 78 on land east of Park View Drive North and 61 on land west of Park Lane.
Despite the reduction in houses, concerns and objections remain over the proposed volume of housing, as well as issues such as the lack of infrastructure in the village and the land at Park View Drive North being a ‘prone’ to flooding.
Greg Elphick, a resident of Park View Drive North said the plans were ‘lunacy’ and ‘madness’ adding that ‘it just flies in the face of common sense’.
He said: “Nobody wants a lot of development in a place that’s got no bloody infrastructure.
“There’s nothing in Charvil, and that’s fine, but if you are going to put hundreds and hundreds more houses and not increase the infrastructure and the services, its madness.”
Discussing the flooding issues at the Park View Drive North field site, Greg said that the area floods ‘regularly’ and explained that this particular site is also opposite where a temporary blood barrier, issued by the Environment Agency, would be used on the other side of the A4.
Greg added: “If you look at how many [homes] Hurst are taking, Sonning are taking and other places are taking, Charvil is being hit ‘disproportionately and there’s no prospect of any uplift in infrastructure, so its an unfair burden on a very isolated little patch of residential housing.”
Cllr Sam Akhtar (Con, Charvil), said: “My view is pretty clear, I’m against overdevelopment. I’m not saying that I want zero houses in Charvil, but what I’m saying is that I think the current levels are still too many.
He added that while the number has decreased from the previous plan, this needs to be ‘brought down further’ and the level needs to be ‘more sustainable’.
Sharing her thoughts, MP Theresa May said: ‘I have objected to these developments
in Charvil.
“The Park View Drive North site is a flood risk and I am concerned about the capability of infrastructure to take new homes at both Park View Drive North and Park Lane, including the pressure which would be placed on the capacity of GP surgeries and local schools.
Mrs May added: “Both sites are also isolated from transport services which would mean new residents would need cars which would greatly increase local traffic congestion.”
WBC has been contacted for comment.