Plans to build 1,500 new homes in a historic Cotswolds town have been denounced as ‘horrendous’ by furious locals.
In a recent poll, 96 per cent of residents of market town Moreton-in-Marsh, Gloucestershire, which dates back to the Romans, voted against Cotswold District Council’s proposals to build the new properties.
They fear the population-doubling development would bring traffic to a standstill and increase pressure on already-stretched services, such as GP surgeries, dentists and schools.
Cotswold District Council’s draft local plan includes proposals for 3,300 homes across the area by 2041 – with Moreton-in-Marsh set to receive the majority.
The plans also come on top of the 900 homes built in the quaint market town since 2011.
Retired Alan Nicholls believes his former job as a transport planning officer gives him extra insight into the problems the intended expansion of the town could cause.
‘I spent my working life looking at issues like this and I am 100 per cent certain any development on such a scale as this would be a disaster for the town,’ the 77-year-old widower said. It would be horrendous for Moreton.
‘The existing roads can barely cope with the volume of traffic moving through the town as it is. If these proposals get the green light, we could see another 3,000 cars on the road, which would mean gridlock day and night.
‘I appreciate there is talk of a bypass to cope with the extra vehicles, but where do they put it and how do they pay for it?’ It is estimated a bypass would cost at least £60m.’
Mr Nicholls, who now works as a volunteer on a local steam railway, added: ‘Besides, we’re surrounded by glorious countryside. It would be a terrible shame to build a road through it.
‘There’s already too much pressure on our infrastructure here. There aren’t enough dentists or GPs and the schools are full. Moreton seems to already be at its limit.
‘I really do hope the council sees sense and abandons this crazy idea.’
Tony Norton, who runs a public relations and marketing firm in the town, said that if the council had approached him to win over public opinion on the homes plans, he would have turned the work down.
Mr Norton, 73, said: ‘I think it is a ludicrous idea and I wouldn’t go anywhere near it on principle if I was asked to help with a PR campaign.
‘Development on this scale is simply not appropriate for a beautiful town like this. The charm of Moreton would disappear.
‘It is a matter of great pride to the people of Moreton that we don’t have multi-national businesses here. We don’t want them.
‘You won’t see a McDonalds restaurant or other fast food outlets because we are proud of our range of independent businesses but if the volume of new-builds goes ahead on this scale, the big corporations will move in very quickly.
‘And then there’s the disruption. Moreton will be a building site for many, many years while the houses are built. The town will be ruined.
‘We’d need new schools, surgeries and other infrastructure and that doesn’t come cheap. As things are now, there is just no way it could cope with these kind of numbers.
‘Moreton’s primary income is from tourists but if these new homes get the go-ahead, tourists will no longer want to come here and our economy will suffer too.
‘It’s the government’s fault because ministers are putting pressure on councils to build millions of new homes as a result of promises they made to the public. But we’re running out of grass to put these new homes on.’
Estate agent and mother-of-two Kate Davis, 43, has spent her whole life in Moreton-on-Marsh and said the planned homes would be ‘disastrous’ for the town she loves.
She said: ‘We already have to wait six weeks to see our GP, unless it’s an emergency.
‘Our primary school is full and we don’t have a secondary school. The nearest one is 10 miles away.
‘The traffic here is already horrendous. We just can’t cope with more houses and people moving in to the area. It’s already unfair on locals, especially the younger ones, who cannot afford to buy their own homes in Moreton. It will just mean hundreds more homes they can’t afford to buy.’
But chef Iva Monjane, 45, said she hopes the proposed new builds might offer her an opportunity to own her own home in the town where she works.
She said: ‘I can’t afford to live here but maybe if there were another 1,500 new properties the prices might come down, for there would be more social housing, which could be good news for me.
‘I live in Stratford-on-Avon and I don’t own a car, so I have to catch a bus, which is an hour each way, to and from work. It broke down on the way home the other day and it took me four hours to get back.
‘I’d love to live here because it’s a beautiful town and my new job is here.’
Campaigner Sue Stapely, who is against what she describes as the ‘overdevelopment’ of Moreton-in-Marsh, said: ‘I’m convinced that Moreton is not the ideal recipient of the massive amount of additional housing which Cotswold District Council (CDC) seems to think it is.
‘It’s simply unfair and unjust to allocate half the total number of homes proposed for the entire Cotswold District to one small town, when a series of smaller developments, spread more thoughtfully throughout the area would be so much less detrimental to our community and produce a much happier mixed series of communities.’
‘Our picturesque High Street is the historic Fosse Way, a major A road and many of the houses on either side of it are protected by being listed.
‘We already have huge parking challenges and if the 1,800+ houses threatened are built, the number of additional cars and the lorries needed for the construction work will simply make the town impassable.’
Ms Stapely said the town ‘will simply grind to a halt’ and fears the infrastructure will be unable to support a new wave of housing.
‘If Angie Rayner’s dream of more affordable, smaller social housing is delivered here, the return on the developers’ investment will be a great deal less than the profits they make on ‘luxury executive home’ properties like those on the Ellenbrook Estate (formerly agricultural land),’ she added.
‘Meanwhile, CDC refuses to accept that its draft Local Plan Update is now redundant, following the new government’s changed housing agenda and targets and the clearly-expressed wishes of the town’s residents.’
Cllr Joe Harris, Leader of Cotswold District Council, said: ‘We are committed to an infrastructure first approach to development. What’s more, upgrading infrastructure in Moreton, such as its wastewater treatment works, fixing traffic congestion, and improving town centre car parking, are all high priority issues that we will try to resolve in the Local Plan Update.
‘The delivery of genuinely affordable homes for local people is a high priority for the council.
‘However, we know the Local Plan Update must take a holistic approach to development, including delivering supporting infrastructure first, and tackling a wide array of issues.
‘This is not only the case for Moreton-in-Marsh but also for the whole of the Cotswold District.’