Petition
Thursday 25 February 2010
OBSERVATIONS
Communities and Local Government
Planning and Development (Hampshire)
The Petition of the Bordon for Option 1 Group
Declares that the Whitehill/Bordon Opportunity Town Enlargement and/or Bordon Eco-Town Development expansion proposals are not appropriate to the character of this small country town. Because of the size of the proposed town enlargement it will have an excessive and undesirable impact on the surrounding areas. The Petitioners respectfully ask that the currently proposed over-development plan for Bordon be stopped. This small town and its surroundings contain characteristics and important heathland and other biodiversity rich habitats, which will be lost or substantially damaged, even if they are mitigated for, by these development proposals and options.
The Petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, to limit the expansion of the town at Whitehill/Bordon to no more than 2000 houses and associated infrastructure: and to insist that the proposed town expansion should be situated only on
the future brownfield sites that are currently barracks, which are to be vacated by the MOD in the town.
And the Petitioners remain, etc. -[Official Report, 6 October 2008; Vol. 480, c. 1P .]
Observations from Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government:
The Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government acknowledges the concerns of the petitioners regarding the eco-town proposals for Bordon.
Whitehill-Bordon was announced as one of the four successful sites in the first wave of eco-town announcements (16 July 2009) following two years of thorough assessment including public consultation and Sustainability Appraisal.
All of the four sites are led by, or strongly supported by, their local authorities who can see the potential for being a national green exemplar and for economic and housing growth to benefit their existing communities.
The original proposals for Whitehill-Bordon included provision for 5,000-8,000 homes, during the assessment process this has been amended to 5,500 homes. This is reflected in the Regional Spatial Strategy for the South East (The South East Plan) which states "A separate allocation of 5,500 has been made for Whitehill-Bordon as the basis for further study including the implications for the Special Protection Area".
An announcement by the Housing Minister, my right hon. Friend the Member for Wentworth (John Healey), on 8 February 2010 has pledged a further £11 million to Whitehill-Bordon to lay the green foundations for the proposed eco-town.
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