What’s in a plan?

At last week’s Planning Committee Wokingham Borough, Conservativerun Council approved a plan for a 70-bed hotel in Sindlesham.

I had no problem with a hotel but I was worried by the traffic impact it might have on local residents.

Air pollution emitted by vehicles, especially when stationary in a queue cause smog, carbon monoxide, and other toxins which residents and their children directly breathe the polluted air into their lungs so a plan that increases air pollution is not a very healthy plan.

The Council Officers recognised that there will be increased traffic, particularly in the morning peak traffic time. Anyone who uses the Mole Road, King Street Lane up to the Winnersh Crossroads (including the so-called new relief road) will know the delays and congestion that already exists and this will make them worse.

The Council’s Highways Officers solution was to do nothing so no Air Quality Monitoring. No concerns either for Green Policies or the Councils flagship Climate Emergency Policy.

Who will suffer with the additional pollution and all its nasty implications along with extra congestion this will create? Why the residents of Winnersh/ Sindlesham, not forgetting their children along with the motorist just trying to get to work and earn a living.

What confidence will this give residents that their health and wellbeing is in safe hands?

Moving swiftly on to another planning application for an eight-bed property to accommodate supported living for seven vulnerable adults all 18+ and additional accommodation for a Council staff member.

Again a very worthwhile project.

The problem was the lack of car parking spaces in an eight-bed property as only one was offered in an off-site location on London Road.

Worse still, the parking space was where the London Road narrows on a bend just short of the one-way system by the Ship Inn.

When challenged what the parking standard would be if a private resident made an application for an eight-bed house the vague answer was probably about six car parking spaces on site.

Is it one rule for the Wokingham Conservative-run council (a bit like their Westminster pal Dominic Cummings) and another for the rest of us?

Again what confidence does this give residents that the system is fair and equitable I wonder?

When Wokingham’s Conservative mates in Westminster say jump Wokingham’s Conservatives say how high and how many houses do you want us to build.

It's very sad that the concreting over large tracts of Wokingham’s Greenfields in the South of the Borough so as to protect their nice green patch in the North will be the result of their folly but do they care? I doubt it.

As a result of their folly trees get cut down destroying the nests of our bird population, leaving us and our children’s children to live in a much more polluted environment with all the nasty implications that will bring.

Is this how Wokingham Borough Council Conservatives see the future of the borough? Cllr Gary Cowan, Independent Borough Councillor for Arborfield, Wokingham Borough Council