It is now official – Highfields Caldecote residents have been right royally stitched up by the very Council that is supposed to be working for us and protecting us. This is further to my previous post where I explained how the Council Reneged On Separation Pledge with regard to the proposed new Bourn Airfield Development.
At the Full Council meeting that took place on Thursday 17th November 2016, the proposal to change the development area for the proposed new village at Bourn Airfield was discussed and voted on by the Councillors.
Not content with actually squeezing a new development in Bourn Airfield against the wishes of our community and several Councillors, the Council has now compounded its first error by committing more errors. It is allowing the eastern boundary of the development to be moved 50m closer to Highfields Caldecote. It will now be 45m from our Parish Boundary.
The Planning Portfolio Holder had accepted at the end of his meeting last week Tuesday 8th November 2016 to exclude Parcel 3 which if allowed would have seen our village completely enveloped on the northwestern end.
But Parcel 4 had been left in to the proposal to Full Council, subject to it having a belt of woodland on some of it. But why add it at all.?
Even when a Cabinet member Cllr Howell very surprisingly agreed with my amendment to exclude Parcel 4 on the basis that developers will do what they want regardless of what conditions are put on a piece of land, it seems some Councillors were not convinced that it was folly to include it.
The Portfolio Holder Cllr Robert Turner refused to accept my ammendment, so it had to go to a vote. The vote was tied at 23 for and 23 against. But the casting vote by the Council Chairman Cllr Sue Ellington, was against, and so the amendment was lost. This means that Parcel 4 will be given to the Developers as part of the land to build on. This addition is still subject to Examination and agreement by the Planning Inspector when she finally gets to the stage of examining the Bourn Airfield Policy SS/6.
Below is an extract from page 17 of the Minutes of the Full Council meeting:
As the Conservatives have the majority on the Council, I wish to thank those of them that voted in favour of my amendment. And I say to those that voted against it, on your head be it and I hope your conscience can live with your decision. When the developers begin to build on it, or come back for you to amend it so they can build on it, I will remind you of today and your betrayal.
Residents of Caldecote, please be informed that Cllr Sue Ellington and Cllr Turner are responsible for the boundary of the proposed Bourn Airfield Development getting closer to our village. You can always write directly to them at Cllr.ellington@scambs.gov.uk and cllr.turner@Scambs.gov.uk if you wish to express your views about their decision today. It is obvious that the Conservative Party of South Cambridgeshire does not have your back and probably never did – or never will.