Supplementary memorandum by the Friends
of the Forest (COA 33(b))
We would like to draw to your attention that
we understand the Forest of Dean District Council (FODDC) has
received the Inspector's Report resulting from last year's Forest
of Dean District Local Plan Inquiry.
In his report the Inspector has produced a number
of findings that run counter to the wishes expressed by the FODDC
in the Forest of Dean District Local Plan Review, Revised Deposit
Version, January 2002 (plus amendments). Relevant to the Coalfield
Communities matter, the Inspector has expressed concern over the
FODDC's intention to allow re-development on the ex-coalfield
sites in the District rather than returning them to their pre-mineral
extraction usage, ie forestry. In addition, it is understood he
is unhappy about what could be considered an imbalance in the
Local Plan in favour of the Council's perceived need for significant
industrial/commercial/housing development rather than celebrating
the District's unique natural and man-made attributes.
Despite a marked lack of enthusiasm on their
part, these criticisms will inevitably lead to significant changes
and alterations in the FODDC's plans for the future of the District.
Virtually all them will also have an impact on the FODDC's intended
use of Coalfield Communities funding, as will a number of the
Inspector's other findings.
In view of what we understand to be the nature
of the Inspector's Report, we feel that due account needs to be
taken of his findings in the present deliberations over the future
use of Coalfields Communities Funding within the Forest of Dean
District. We would therefore urge that the Forest of Dean District
Council be pressed to release a copy of the Inspector's Report
to the ODPM: Housing, Planning, Local Government and the Regions
Committee—Coalfield Communities, as a matter of urgency.
In the meantime, should the Committee require immediate access,
an electronic version of the document can be read on www.fdean.gov.uk.
Yours faithfully,
C A Smith
Chairman, Friends of the Forest
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