Housing Threat To Thame Bypass Site

AFTER years of staving off housing development on land off Thame’s Northern bypass, the county council is looking at the area as part of its Residential Housing Allocation.
The proposal came as a shock to town councillors, who were only informed of them via an email sent to the town clerk, with only six working days to respond.

As part of the emerging ‘Local Development Framework’, which replaces the current Local Plan for future development, the district council is consulting all landowners, including the county and town council, to submit site proposals for residential development.
Oxfordshire County Council’s bombshell message said that its Development Framework submission will be for mixed development of recreation, community facilities AND housing on its land next to Church Farm football pitches (land which the town council leases from OCC).
The message went on to say: “This proposal is likely to be the Council’s (OCC) minimum submission for the area.”
Referring to the proposals for a new football stadium and attendant facilities currently being planned by the Thame Football Partnership (including Thame United), the message went on: “Given the existing and potential recreation facilities, there is merit in including your Council’s (Thame TC)leased land in the submission for mixed development.
“The existing layout of recreation facilities and leasehold interests of both councils is not necessarily the best way to plan future development. If the stadium were to be built in the area, and if there were to be mixed development as suggested, the total layout would have to be planned afresh.”

Thame councillors’ responses to the email sender’s request for their comments on the proposals were unanimously negative.
“We should laugh this of the Chamber,” said Cllr David Bretherton.
“If this proposal was coming from a developer, it would be kicked out in no uncertain terms.”

The Mayor, Cllr Champken-Woodss, seemed to smell a rat, and said:”This is a joke. If this land was ear-marked for housing, it would make it worth more. It is difficult not to think that the timing of this proposal is more than just coincidence.”

Cllr David Dodds said that in his opinion the county council was “flying a kite.” He could see how the council was perhaps trying to get ‘Best Value’ he said, but added: “This effects people’s lives.”

The Policy and Resources Committee, which met on Tuesday, all agreed to support the reply sent by the Town Clerk, which stated:
“We are aware tht existing housing needs to 2011 are being met by brownfield windfall sites and with Thame located outside the Central Oxfordshire growth area in the draft Southeast Plan, there is recognition that there will be limited additional housing growth in Thame to 2026.
The Clerk referred to the comments of the Inspector for the current Local Plan to the effect that there was no strategic or other need to release land on the edge of Thame for housing.
In conclusion, her reply stated: “Given the emerging policies of the Southeast Plan and the need to safeguard open countryside for appropriate uses, we are unlikely to be able to support the ‘residential’ element of the proposed mix, but would be pleased to progress with you the recreational/community facility use of the site.”