Mount Hermon West
Party in the Park
During the meeting of Full Council earlier this week I asked what estimate the council has made of the success of the various outdoor music and entertainment events that were held in Woking Park this summer. While most of the events that took place over the last few months have been small concerts involving local schools and community groups, positive feedback has been received about two larger events, Party in the Park and the Big Gig.
Party in the Park was run by council officers and had over 15,000 visitors throughout the course of the day, double the number of visitors in previous years. Satisfaction surveys were completed by visitors and the average score received for the event was 9 out of 10. The Big Gig was organised by the Phoenix Cultural Centre and they too had a great day with very enthusiastic feedback.
As a supplementary I also asked what steps the council takes to let residents in areas adjacent to the park know when such events are happening and what measures are put in place to ensure they are not overly disruptive. I was told the council does appreciate the high impact these events have on neighbouring residents and they try to use early notification and advertising so people know when they will be taking place.
The council tries to encourage the use of public transport for people getting events in the park as this helps to minimise disruption from traffic. For some events the council has people on site to monitor noise levels to ensure that they are not creating a nuisance.
Apart from the fireworks in November, most of the events hosted in the park take place during the day in the summer months, and such concerts are relatively rare, so I feel the right balance has been struck between getting the most out of this important amenity and public space and also making such that residents in Mount Hermon, who benefit from the park all year round, are not excessively disrupted.
York Road planning application
Some residents have contacted me to express their opposition to an application to demolish the two storey house next to Consort Court on York Road and replace it with a large tower block with 47 flats and 30 parking spaces.
I have three concerns about this application. The first is that the size of the proposal is out of keeping with similar properties in York Road. Although the New Central flats are just around the corner, properties on York Road are smaller with more unique features and we generally do not have kind of larger developments such as those seen around the station at this location. I would like to see the distinct character of both York Road and Mount Hermon Road maintained and would not wish this application to set a precedent for more tower blocks on these streets in the future.
Secondly, there is an issue with loss of amenity due to such an overbearing development. Residents at Consort Court have stated that he new building comes very close to their boundary and wlil leave them feeling ‘hemmed in’. Ideally I would like to see the number of floors on the new building reduced so that it is consistent with other properties at the top end of York Road.
Finally, I believe that there is a lack of sufficient parking space for the number of dwellings proposed. The developer may anticipate that many of the new residents will use the train to commute to work and so will not require a car, and the council does wish to encourage people to use other means of transport, but realistically we have to accept that people own cars and will want to drive them. I am also concerned that the addition of so many additional homes at quite this narrow part of York Road will exacerbate problems with congestion and traffic flows.
I have made representations to council officers and let them know my views, and very much hope they will listen to residents’ concerns. I will also take a close interest in this matter when it comes before the Planning Committee later in the autumn.
New planning application at St Dunstan’s church site
Residents living near the old St Dunstan’s church off White Rose Lane will have received a letter from the council in the last few days advising them of a new planning application on the site. A plan has been submitted for landscaping and beautification changes to accompany the proposal for a residential development of 91 flats with retail units and amenity space, which was approved by the Planning Committee in 2012.
There is a long history of contentious planning applications on the St Dunstan’s site, which remains an under-used brownfield site that would benefit from some form of house building. I have always felt that any development at this location needs to be in keeping with the local area and similar to neighbouring properties on White Rose Lane and around from the post office on the corner of Oriental Road. My colleagues and I successfully defeated a proposal for a 23 storey building in 2010, and were able to negotiate with the developer over the height of the currently approved planning consent, securing a reduction from 17 storeys to a much more acceptable range of between 7 and 11 storeys.
The current application does not represent a material change to the plans that were agreed a few years ago and so it will be dealt with under delegated powers rather than going to a full Planning Committee. However, residents are still able to make representations and can have their say through the council’s public access planning portal, or by contacting the planning department by post or email. The deadline for responses is Wednesday 22nd Juy and any comments received will help inform officers’ decision on whether to recommend that the application be granted and on what conditions to attach to the approval if it does go through.
Local improvements in Mount Hermon
I’ve just been sent a report by Surrey County Council which gives a breakdown of all the funding agreed by the Joint Committee in our respective areas. Each borough in Surrey has an allocated budget for expenditure such as highway maintenance, while county councillors have an allocation which they can use to fund projects or work such as traffic calming measures or vehicle activated road signs in their ward.
The report includes some of the improvements that my colleagues and I have delivered for Mount Hermon. It highlights the trees which were planted at my instigation along Oriental Road and across from Heathside Crescent. It also mentions the new traffic calming measures on Pembroke Road and the resurfacing of Onslow Crescent.
Over the next few months I intend to raise further items for consideration including the need for new streetlights, for old road signs to be replaced, and for further traffic calming measures where appropriate. If you are aware of any local causes or projects which need financing in Mount Hermon, please do let me know and I would be happy to discuss it with my County Council colleagues or raise it at the Joint Committee.