The easiest way for me to comment on the Local Plan is to make a general observation rather than try to fit it in with your documents.
I do not agree with the draft vision for the reasons set out below:
• the Council has failed to recognise that the need for housing is grossly overstated.
The significant number of houses which have been built recently are not for local people but for large numbers of people coming into the area-many from London. Rochford District Council should not be trying to solve the housing problems of London Authorities and others.
• Design
The houses built are bland and badly designed with no regard for the historic setting within the Rochford Hundred area.
• Infrastructure
There has been no attention paid to the infrastructure issues-there were no new schools or doctors’ surgeries built, despite the Council naively thinking this would happen. The roads did not and still do not have the capacity and design needed to accommodate additional traffic.
The Local Plan talks about Green Space and Open Areas but in reality these are ignored when it comes to going along with what developers want rather than what the local residents want.
To meet my concerns, the Council will need to devise a Plan which is very specific in addressing the matters I have raised in order to ensure there is no further development of unsustainable numbers of unsuitable houses. Simply making generalised statements is not acceptable.