Boreham Airfield Borough Consultation August 2007

Chelmsford North Action Group

Your last opportunity to let Chelmsford Borough Council know you want to preserve the Chelmer Valley.

You must please respond by August 7th

Note - by clicking on the picture you can enlarge it for easy viewing!

Chelmsford North Action Group is an ad-hoc group of Community members. We have no commercial interest in any Developer.

We have been sharing with you for more than one year our fears for new developments in Chelmsford that will ruin the Chelmer Valley. That fear is intensified.

Because we all stood together, the choice for the new North East bypass is the closest to what we all felt was best.

But the Chelmer Valley is still under threat. How? Because of the plan to put 800 new homes in Broomfield and 5,000 new homes in the Beaulieu Park area. This means a Chelmer Valley link road. This Link is featured as an "alternative site" in the consultation – see below. Residents are encouraged to vote against it. It is Option 49 and would be the end of Broomfield!

The best option is to put all the new homes planned for greenfield sites on Boreham Airfield (Gt. Holts). It is hardly Greenfield land. It’s previously heavily used land. The simulated aerial view shown here is a reliable indication of what the development will look like.

Any other location for the 6,000 new homes eats up more vast amounts of greenfield land and will lead to a Chelmer Valley crossing. How will that enhance the absolutely beautiful Chelmer Valley?

Chelmsford NAG wants to see the Chelmer Valley preserved as it is for generations to come.

In the current Local Development Framework planning, Chelmsford residents have never had the option to express their preference for Boreham Airfield as the site for any homes. Chelmsford NAG consider that it is far and away the best site for all 6,000 homes.

IF Boreham Airfield is chosen, there will be no need for large numbers of new homes in Broomfield or Beaulieu Park.

But now you can let the Borough Council know – we must hurry! The Consultation closes on August 7th. That is the last date to have any weight in what you say.

There are two ways you can have your say:

1. Complete the attached Chelmsford Borough Council Form. In paragraph 3 you should insert Alt 34 if you support Boreham Airfield for all the new homes. You must ensure the form arrives at the Chelmsford Borough Council no later than August 7th.

2. Or you can go on-line and complete the form. Start here ; www.chelmsford.gov.uk/ldf. Then you can click on:-

a. Core Strategy Alternative Development Sites Consultation

b. Alternative Development Sites Online Response Form

c. The letters (a) and (b) are not on the web site. Read (a) where all 70 alternate sites are shown. NAG supports ALT 34 – Boreham Airfield.

d. On-line response Form is at (b)



Some of the reasons we feel Boreham Airfield is the best choice for 6,000 new homes:


The key points which we believe make Boreham Airfield the best location for major development include:


 It has been independently assessed previously by the Council’s own consultants and they found that it scored well in terms of sustainability;

 It provides a long-term solution and therefore reduces development pressure on alternative sites in other sensitive locations within Chelmsford Borough;

 It provides a critical mass of development in one location which can best facilitate major new infrastructure such as the proposed NE bypass and a new NE Chelmsford railway station.

 It can facilitate effective public transport to link through to the town centre and other key destinations but at the same time avoid coalescence with existing communities at Broomfield, Boreham and Springfield.

 It avoids the need to build on countryside which English Heritage considers to be ‘special’ (at Broomfield and around Grade I Listed New Hall) and uses disturbed and previously developed land on and around Boreham Airfield.

Contact:
If we can help in any way please either telephone 362 295 or email peterwloose@compuserve.com.