Who will benefit from Elms Park plan?

DEAR Editor,  The latest ploy in the attempt to build houses on Elms Field is a planning application to ‘improve’ Elms Park – land which is owned by Thame Council, which means owned by Thame residents. Strangely, this application is made by the developer, not by the Council, which surely needs no consent to improve the park. The situation becomes suspect when the so-called ‘improvements’ are examined.

The valuable and mature trees which the developer and Planning Consent applicant, Rectory Homes, wishes to remove are in Elms field, not the park, so how do they get involved in a park improvement application? The benefit is entirely to Rectory because a line of their proposed houses are shown situated within a few metres of the park / Elms Field fenceline. Furthermore, since the houses will never be built if Thame residents are listened to, there is no point in chopping down the trees in advance.

Also, from the park’s point of view, the basketball court is perfectly okay where it is – but its position does not suit Rectory who do not want it in close proximity to their hoped-for houses.

Same with the mounds. These destroy the park’s historical ridge and furrow archaeology, which corresponds with the burgage plot orientation of the town of Thame. The mounds are simply a cheap way for Rectory to get rid of spoil emanating from the digging of house foundations.

Same again with the proposed new path between Elms field and the park. It is of no benefit to anybody other than the possible future owners of Rectory’s expensive new homes. Furthermore, its creation contravenes the contract which the Council signed in 1948. That conveyance deed makes it clear that the gift of land for the park was made on the understanding that the Elms and its environment, which includes Elms field, would be protected and that there would be no right of access from one to the other. Councillors who renege on this contractural obligation risk being sued by the constituents they are supposed to represent.

Why, one may ask, is the current Town Council appearing to collude in the so-called ‘improvement’ application?

Thame’s residents and friends should be aware of any ‘smoke and mirrors’. They can sign the petition against development on Elms field, either by logging in to elmspetition.org.uk  or by by signing a paper copy at PetCare in Cornmarket.