Bletsoe - aftermath of the planning permission
Well, we went to Bletsoe and left with our skins more or less intact.
In fact a packed parish council meeting, while not happy with the result of the gipsy and travellers’ site appeal, were mostly courteous and seemed to accept that the borough had done what it could to support them. Only one appeared to be fixated on the idea that we could have changed the planning inspector’s mind if only we had designated the proposed site at Meadow Lane earlier than we did.
I explained that the site, while council-owned, was leased to somebody else who had to agree to vacate it and the existence of rare birds was hardly our fault. Eventually he fell out with the chairman who had to tell him to shut up.
Paul Rowland, in charge of planning, was quietly courteous and explained everything in detail making no promises that we could not keep. People seemed to appreciate the fact and that we had gone there prepared to face the flak. The applicant only got a three year permission and provided other sites are identified in time, Bletsoe should be restored to its previous state of calm at the end of the period. Meantwhile, Paul said he would be in talks with applicant Tommy Allen as to the best way of implementing the conditions.
July 7th, 2009 at 2:23 pm
Dear Frank.
There’s a consultancy, run by a former Lib Dem MP, Matthew Green, called “Green Solutions”.
Perhaps you and Mr Rowland could find out a little about Mr Green and his methods, before attempting to negotiate with any potential client of his?
July 7th, 2009 at 4:18 pm
This is very Delphic, Matthew. Perhaps you had better explain.
July 8th, 2009 at 2:31 pm
Mr Green is paid money to tell property developers how to tie planning officers in knots over this kind of development. He is paid money because he generally does succeed in getting the developers their wicked way with the greenbelt and making planning officers look extremely foolish. He has left dozens of angry communities in his wake, all over England.
Mr Green knows exactly how Mr Rowland will attempt to apply the law, because he was on the select committee that drafted and amended those laws.