Fulford Parish Council Objection Letter

MRS J M FLETCHER
PARISH CLERK
“EPPLEWORTH”
MAIN STREET
DEIGHTON
YORK
YO19 6HD

14th September 2004

Mr D Hendley
Planning Officer-East
City of York Council
Env. & Development Services
9 St Leonard’s Place
YORK
YO1 7ET

Dear Mr Hendley

Planning Application No. 04/02546/OUT
Royal Masonic Benevolent Institute Homes, Connaught Court, St Oswald’s Road, Fulford –Outline application for erection of a 38 bed extra care home, residential development, relocation of existing bowling green and provision of new access road.

We wish to express our deepest concern at the very significant loss of visual amenity that would result should this application be granted. A loss that would affect not merely the residents of Fulford but also many of the residents who live on the SE of York and regularly use the A19 as well as those people who use the Ouse and its banks south of York for recreation. This site is now the last sizeable expanse of `parkland’ complete with open grass and magnificent mature trees, visible from the A19, between the by-pass and the city-centre. At the same time the other side of the site borders directly on the protected flood-plane of the Ouse, with its special flora and fauna and magnificent views across the river. In addition, to build on an attractive open area so close to the village church and hence the centre of Fulford will have an enormous impact on the feel of the village and, since this is a main arterial road into the City, on a visitor’s impression of York.

The following is the response of Fulford Parish Council regarding the above application. This response is the unanimous view of the Council following two parish meetings each of which has been attended by over 20 concerned members of the public.

Outlet on to A19

  1. Another outlet on to the A19 between St Oswald’s Rd and Fulford Park is highly undesirable. The 1999 report from Colin Buchanan Partners, far from supporting the idea of an extra junction, looks at the benefits of closing the junction of Heslington Lane and Fulford Road. We would not wish to see this implemented but it is obvious that the advice in the report was to reduce, rather than increase, the number of junctions and traffic joining Fulford Road.
  2. There would be a problem of access on to the A19.
  3. It would be difficult for transport to turn right from the A19 into the new road thus tailbacks will develop.
    Many vehicles are parked on both sides of the road when there is a large wedding, funeral or other function at the church making access very dangerous. Thus yellow lines would have to be put near the new road forcing cars to park nearby (probably in Fulford Park which is already frequently full of cars from the doctors’ surgery or in Heslington Lane which already has little space for parking that is not taken up by residents).
  4. There are bus stops on both sides of the road near the proposed entrance. Parked buses would narrow sightlines creating a potential for accidents.

Flood Plain

  1. We are surprised that developers are even considering building apartment blocks in this area. The water came to the edge of the Bowling Green at Connaught Court in 2000 and almost reached it as recently as a few weeks ago.
  2. St Oswald’s Rd and the surrounding area were badly flooded in 2000.
  3. The apartment blocks are on the very edge of this flood plain and could cause or exacerbate flooding problems for others.
  4. In addition there are at present no blocks of flats built bordering the river south of the centre of York, only houses. Hence to build apartments here would significantly alter the character of the suburb of Fulford.

Problems of St Oswald’s Rd

The planned development is for 54 new dwellings all of which will access onto St Oswald’s Rd.

  1. On the edge of a conservation area it retains much of its original character as an open country lane that was once the boundary to the City. The overall impact is of very low-level, low-density housing, set well back from St Oswald’s Rd with substantial quantities of open grassed area. Housing density and additional traffic would create unacceptable damage to this, one of the most attractive and varied residential roads in York. This type of area is now rare within York and should be preserved.
  2. It affords one of the main accesses to the renovated riverside area leading to the Millennium Bridge, the New Walk and Rowntrees Park. It is an important route for walkers, runners, dog owners and families with children. Students, cycling to the boat club or travelling between the University and their lodgings, also heavily use it. Cyclists will be endangered (as highlighted in the Sanderson Report).
  3. The plan named “Landscape Strategy” submitted by the RMBI states “3 storey buildings to relate to 3 storey housing on St Oswald’s Rd”. This claim is disingenuous for all the houses in the road apart from three are two storeys. Consequently the proposal to build three-storey houses fronting St Oswald’s Road is inappropriate, especially since their presence on the south side of the street would significantly reduce the available light in the street, particularly in the mornings and in winter, both for motorists, cyclists and pedestrians and of course for those living in the houses opposite.

Adverse traffic impact:

  1. John Bann who was Head of the Transport Planning Unit at CYC and is now Head of Transport and Highways Division at Sheffield City Council estimates that traffic on to the A19 will be increased by between a third and a half of current levels. But, as the Sanderson report emphasised, the junction of St Oswald’s Rd with Fulford Road is not adequate to safely accommodate any increase in traffic flow.
  2. Most of the houses date from the Victorian and Georgian periods and have no drives so residents have to park on the road. Thus the road is too narrow to allow two cars to pass making St Oswald’s Rd quite unsuitable to take any significant increase in volumes of traffic.
  3. There is already a problem of access on to the A19. Visibility is very poor because of cars parked in front of the terrace houses on Fulford Rd. thus making access on to the A19 difficult and, when turning right, dangerous.
  4. Vehicles turning across the traffic off the A19 into St Oswald’s Rd often cause a tailback on the A19 because parked cars prevent following vehicles from getting past.
  5. Cars parked in St Oswald’s Rd will spill over into Fulford Rd thus preventing those who live there from parking outside their own houses.
  6. The road will no longer act so effectively as a “buffer” between the off-road cycle path and the busy A19.

Problems of Atcherley Close

  1. The building of blocks of flats in what is a mainly residential area is quite inappropriate. In addition the proposed site will mean that several houses will be overshadowed by the flats and will lose their present privacy.

Connaught Court

  1. This is a resource for elderly and frail people who need residential care and a tranquil environment. The development would be intrusive for the residents, inevitably lead to a reduction of their quality of life and be counter-productive to the main purpose of the residential home as set up by the original benefactors.
  2. There will be a similar impact on the lives of the elderly residents of the Sir John Hunt Memorial Homes, adjacent to the site.
  3. Residents, all of whom are elderly will have to put up with a building site around them for at least 2 years.
  4. If high-density apartment blocks and homes are built the residents will cease to benefit from their semi-rural environment. In particular their existing magnificent view of the Ings, river and land beyond will be lost, as too will their use of the `parkland’ currently surrounding them.
  5. The elderly residents living in the bungalows are to be made temporarily homeless. Many are currently distressed. The RMBI has said if they cannot be found homes in Connaught Court then they will be accommodated in one of several other Masonic Homes around the country. The old people stress that they do not wish to move to other parts of the country away from their families and friends.

Copper Beeches

  1. A tree survey was carried out on behalf of CYC in December. Two beech trees that are over 150 years old described as “large and significant and easily seen from the Main Street” were deemed to have a safe useful life expectancy in excess of 50 years. Permission to fell these trees was refused by the CYC in February. A later survey carried out on behalf of the RMBI said they were “at risk of decline”. Consequently permission was given to fell the trees. The reason given by the RMBI for felling these trees was that they blocked light to the bungalows (which they now wish to demolish). However it is noticeable that they are both in the way of the proposed development.
  2. Bob Missen, the Council’s ecologist, has recommended that at least one of the beech trees should be retained because of the ancient soil which has been preserved beneath it. Apparently this long-undisturbed soil sustains many rare fungi.

Wild life

  1. The proposed development will means that a variety of animals and birds will lose their natural habitat both on the CC site itself and because of inevitable disturbance to the adjacent ings.
  2. Of special significance in this respect are the bats that currently roost in the Coach House at Fulford Park. It is known that these use Connaught Court grounds for foraging and as a route to “commute” to their feeding ground.

General Objections

  1. Given the increased widespread concern over flooding and the general use by insurers of post codes to assess flood risk (irrespective of the actual height of the ground concerned) it is very likely that the proposed dwellings (especially the apartments) will be built up to a level that is significantly out of keeping with existing buildings.
  2. Building will raise the proposed houses and apartments above the high water level of the river. This will affect the noise levels, environment and amenity space for local residents using Fulford Ings.

The A19 is reaching (or has reached) saturation point. Fulford Parish Council requests that planners take into account the proposed developments for Germany Beck, Heslington East and the Gimcrack when considering this application.

Yours sincerely,
Jeanne M Fletcher (Mrs)
Clerk to the Council

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