Monthly Archives: November 2014

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10 Nov 2014

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EDDC

A chance to put questions to Police and Crime Commissioner at Knowle this Thursday (13 November)

Reminder:
THURSDAY 13th NOVEMBER,6.30pm Knowle.Final Overview and Scrutiny Committee for 2014, with presentation by Police and Crime Commissioner Tony Hogg. Agenda here http://new.eastdevon.gov.uk/media/476265/131114-os-agenda-combined.pdf
Don’t forget EDDC’s new rules…’Where members of the public wish to raise a question on an issue which is not included on the agenda, this must be submitted in writing to democratic services two working days before the meeting.’

Presumably, Cllr Tim Wood, as the O&S Chair, will take this opportunity to ask Tony Hogg some searching questions on behalf of fellow councillors and the public http://eastdevonalliance.org/2014/09/16/councillor-vows-to-challenge-police-commissioner/

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10 Nov 2014

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EDDC, Exmouth

Consultation on even more houses for Exmouth

150 houses on fields between Higher Marley Road, Hulham Road and Dinan Way -in addition to the 700 already earmarked at Goodmores Farm and Plumb Park near Littleham. The site for the development is on fields between Higher Marley Road, Hulham Road and Dinan Way.

The consultation will take place at Brixington Church on Tuesday 18 November between 4pm and 8pm.

http://www.exeterexpressandecho.co.uk/Exmouth-public-invited-say-proposals-150-houses/story-24508427-detail/story.html

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10 Nov 2014

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EDDC, Exmouth, Misc

Exmouth to have ” holistic transport hub”

http://www.exeterexpressandecho.co.uk/Phase-redevelopment-plans-transform-area-Exmouth/story-24508636-detail/story.html

Definition of “holistic”:

“concerned with wholes rather than analysis or separation of its parts”

… bit like the draft local plan then!

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10 Nov 2014

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Beer, Local Plan, Misc, Newton Poppleford, Seaton/ Colyford / Colyton, Woodbury

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Beer and Colyton now designated “small towns” for development purposes

Tucked away in the review of the draft Local Plan timetable is this:

3.6 Planning Policy officers are preparing a paper that assesses the suitability and appropriateness of differing villages (and the small towns of Colyton and Beer) to accommodate residential development.

Which, of course, means that these two villages have been identified for much more development.

It may come as no surprise to Colyton (pop over 3,000 and a small shopping centre and with DMC Chairman Helen Parr as its district councillor) but it might be a bit of a surprise for Beer (pop around 1,500 and with one general store and a post office).

Yet no mention in the same document of the “small towns” of as Newton Poppleford ((over 2,000 population) or Woodbury (around 3,500) where Clinton Devon Estates and Greendale have expansion plans.

Source: http://new.eastdevon.gov.uk/media/444283/211014-item-7-local-plan-update-rpt.pdf

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10 Nov 2014

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Misc

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The Draft Local Plan – where are we now? Free-for-all development to continue until the May 2015 district council elections

Click to access 211014-item-7-local-plan-update-rpt.pdf

An awful lot of shoulds and mights and identifying milestones by seasons (spring, summer) but no actual dates.

What is totally clear is that the free-for-all for developers is certain to last the full term of this council, with adoption of the Local Plan scheduled for AFTER the May 2015 elections (presuming it is not thrown out again in which case a new council has to start the process all over again).

There must be some very happy developers out there – and look out for the usual raft of new planning applications just before the Christmas shut down at the council.

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10 Nov 2014

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AONB, Sidmouth/ Sidford/ Sidbury

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Sidmouth Garden Centre wants to extend business units further into AONB

http://www.devon24.co.uk/news/green_units_won_t_destroy_our_aonb_1_3836721

The owner is a Sidmouth town councillor and on that council’s planning committee.

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10 Nov 2014

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Cranbrook, EDDC, Knowle/Honiton/Exmouth relocation, Skypark

What the general public thinks about Knowle relocation and “East of Exeter Growth Point”

Sale of Knowle HQ inevitable Sidmouth Herald

Reading the article in the Sidmouth Herald…..the jobs at the New Exeter Science Park (well paid jobs) would hardly benefit Seaton and Axminster……it seems they seem to be thinking of Cranbrook.

These jobs will also help Exeter people more than East Devon. The Science Park is too close to the City of Exeter.
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Pining Lass about 20 hours ago

I also found it sadly amusing that it was said that as the Knowle would eventually have to be sold when that tier of government was scrapped that there shouldn’t be protests about it being sold now!

Can’t they see that there is a world of difference between an empty resource being sold because it is no longer needed and the selling of a resource at a huge cost to the taxpayer to move somewhere else?

They have spent a large amount of money already, are intent on spending millions more and borrowing so the taxpayer has liability for debt ….. and now they are accepting that EDDC will disappear anyway. What are they like?

Theinquisitiveranter about an hour ago

I would like to have a public enquiry into how they are blatantly wasting taxpayers’ money. When this move was first mooted, the public were told that it would be cost neutral. Now that it isn’t, we should be permitted to have our say. It is clear that the merry bandleaders treat the public with utter disrespect. The move to the airport site should be abandoned due to in-accessibility for a great part of the taxpayers. Will the council pay for taxis for people wishing to visit their offices? Perhaps they will be offering free airport parking to us all!

Source: https://www.streetlife.com/conversation/3row0w9ul8zuq/#comment-2

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9 Nov 2014

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EDDC, Feniton/ Talaton, Flooding, Wainhomes

Wainhomes and Feniton flooding

Temporary attenuation tanks and a temporary ditch on the Wainhomes site do not appear to have alleviated surface water run off from the site at all.

See (with particularly harrowing pictures)

https://susiebond.wordpress.com/

Recall that Wainhomes excuse for not putting in the permanent attenuation tanks on this site (before 6 the homes which are now occupied and which the planning inspector said must be put in before ANY homes were occupied) was that they are planning to put in different tanks to accommodate other planning applications they will put in at some point in the future and which may or may not get permission.

What a nightmare this small village is suffering still.

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9 Nov 2014

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AONB, EDDC, Environment (local), Local Plan, NPPF

Retiring director of National Trust slams Prime Minister

In an article in today’s Sunday Times, Sir Simon Jenkins says:

“PM ‘ has wrecked beautiful Britain’

Summary

He argues that Britain has a better record of protecting urban environments than rural ones;

“We have looked after our cities very well for decades”

“We are very good at preserving architecture. But we are now really bad at protecting the countryside and landscapes.”

Over the past year, the trust has received about 400 calls from people in towns and villages objecting to what they consider unsightly and unnecessary applications for developments on their outskirts, “Yet five years ago we used to get a handful annually,” said Jenkins.

He ends by saying: “This guerrilla warfare between developers and the countryside must be stopped.”

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9 Nov 2014

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Affordable and Social Housing, EDDC

More jobs – but who WANTS them?

East Devon has very low unemployment levels. East Devon District Council says its aims is to create thousands of new jobs and thousands more houses for the people doing those jobs.

In Northamptonshire they also have low unemployment and a local company is having to fill vacancies for new jobs by advertising them in Hungary because locals are not applying for them:

Greencore, which employs 1,200 staff in the US and Britain, is currently advertising for machine setters, cleaners, porters and quality monitors to work at the new factory.

Mrs Russell said recruiters would be heading to Hungary tomorrow to find new employees. She said: ‘In Northampton, we do have a problem in that there is very low unemployment. There aren’t enough people around and it is not always the kind of work people have wanted to do.’

She said Greencore had run a scheme with job centres in Northampton, but had still not attracted many applicants from the town. She said: ‘Ideally we would be flooded with applications, but actually we are having to work really hard to find people who will come and work for us. Everyone has an equal opportunity, but we haven’t been able to find the staff coming to us locally.’

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2827625/Factory-bosses-forced-recruit-Hungary-locals-not-apply.html

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9 Nov 2014

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EDDC, Voting

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Those missing voters and telephone canvassing

Mark Williams maintained to the Parliamentary Commission on Voter Engagement that his telelphone canvassing method was superior to door-to-door canvassing in producing voter registrations.

An Ofcom survey reveals that only 28% of 16-24 year-olds use a landline phone compared to 64% of all adults. 94% of this age group say their mobile is the main way they make and receive calls.

How did Mr Williams track down the mobile phone numbers of voters in this age group and people in other age groups who have only a mobile phone? Or were they tracked at all?

Anyone ever seen a personal mobile phone number in a telephone directory? Perhaps he used forms that people sent in for other reasons where they divulged their numbers to EDDC – but how many of the missing voters would that have caught bearing in mind he was looking for people who had not registered on the electoral roll and he missed opportunities to match data?

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9 Nov 2014

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Affordable and Social Housing, EDDC, Seaton/ Colyford / Colyton

Affordable retirement flats in Seaton?

According to today’s Sunday Times McCarthy & Stone (now owned by hedge funds) plans to list on the stock market next year having had a “fivefold surge in profits” – sales up 25%, profits up from £12.5m to £63.2m.

More than half of its shares are owned by Goldman Sachs, TPG, Anchorage Capital and Strategic Value Partners. Its investment bank is Rothschilds.

So, we can surely look forward to a large percentage of the retirement flats in Seaton (and wherever else they build in East Devon) being “affordable” can’t we!

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8 Nov 2014

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Affordable and Social Housing, Cranbrook, EDDC

Cranbrook – stable, ooh look the door is open – well what do you know, the horses have bolted!

Quick, let’s spend lots of money building new stables for new horses … no don’t worry about the doors … we can always retro-fit them if we need them… let’s just employ a lot more people and have a meeting … get the sherry in …

http://www.cranbrookherald.com/news/eddc_s_challenge_cranbrook_grows_while_funds_shrink_1_3833357

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8 Nov 2014

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Affordable and Social Housing, EDDC, Seaton/ Colyford / Colyton

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Poor, poor Bovis – or is it poor, pathetic East Devon District Council?

EDDC agreed to allow Tesco to drop all the affordable housing on their Seaton site as Tesco said it would be uneconomic for any developer to build there if affordable housing was included.

The Development Management Committee agreed a “surcharge” on the site so that if it DID make a profit, EDDC would see some of it. When the planning consent was ratified, that clause had disappeared. No-one quite understands where, why or how that happened, but it did.

Bovis are currently building the first 50 of a planned 300+ houses on the site (in addition to the McCarthy and Stone 42 apartment block which is on the site previously earmarked for a hotel).

Bovis announced yesterday that they expect their profits to be up 10% on last year and is forecasting higher dividends for shareholders. They mention that rising house prices have absorbed increased costs and says they have a substantial order book for 2015.

Lucky Bovis, unlucky Seaton, pathetic East Devon District Council – the developer’s friend.

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8 Nov 2014

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Misc

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Is this why our council is dragging its heels on Community Infrastructure Levy?

Oh, the shame of having to pass 25% of it to the town or parish councils!

http://www.nalc.gov.uk/campaign-updates?view=entry&id=69

and this is why developers don’t like it:

http://www.warnergoodman.co.uk/news/2014/10/commercial-property-developers-start-to-see-impact-of-the-community-infrastructure-levy-regulations-2010/

All in all, our local developers must be laughing all the way to the bank: ignoring S106 requirements and having no CIL to worry about.

The council’s CIL draft was thrown out by the Planning Inspector because it was based on the Draft Local Plan figures which he refused to accept because they were out-of-date and not appropriately evidence-based.

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7 Nov 2014

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EDDC, Exeter City Council, Knowle/Honiton/Exmouth relocation, Sidmouth/ Sidford/ Sidbury

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Sale of Knowle HQ ‘inevitable’, says EDDC Chief Executive

So reads the headline of a report in today’s Sidmouth Herald, about Mark Williams’ recent talk to the Sidmouth Men’s Forum. The EDDC CEO is also quoted as telling the group, “It is very nice to be (at the Knowle) but it is too big for what we need”.  A pity he hasn’t looked carefully at the research by Robin Fuller ….http://saveoursidmouth.com/2013/08/16/serious-questions-over-size-of-modern-offices-at-knowle/ , nor considered properly costing the option of ‘staying and improving’ , as prudent householders do in times of austerity.

In his presentation, Mr Williams dropped some hints about the future reorganisation of local government, possibly towards one large unitary authority for Devon. This chimes with what EDA has heard from those in the know, who believe East Devon is likely to merge with Exeter and Teignbridge.  Could this be more than a rumour….?

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7 Nov 2014

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EDDC

3 Dorset councils to merge

They will keep the same number of councillors as before but only one administration service with one Chief Executive.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-dorset-29944622

Watch now for East Devon merging with one, two or three councils around us – after spending more than £250,000 of our money in 2007-11 telling us that this was not a good idea and resisting a Devon unitary authority.  And when one of the first things that the new Coalition government did was to stop all talk of such a deal saying it would not be beneficial to us

Truly, a year is a long time in politics!

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6 Nov 2014

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General Election, Hugo Swire

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Political donations – the Swire connection

An eagle-eyed local correspondent has added more information to our story:

http://eastdevonalliance.org/2014/11/05/political-parties-must-check-the-source-of-their-donations-carefully/

with the following comment:

“I believe from press reports that our own dear MP Hugo Swire might have been the auctioneer who took the winning bid from the parties concerned at the annual Tory fund raiser.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2702132/As-Cameron-talks-tough-Russia-scrutiny-grows-oligarchs-Putin-cronies-showering-Tories-Moscows-millions.html

Wasn’t this also the occasion that Hugo boasted of selling a jar of his (East Devon?)honey for £15,000 ? (He must really be in touch with the struggles of the proles of East Devon!)

Having lived in Henley on Thames, I am familiar with the addresses associated with the winning bidder and Henley Concierge, the latter especially should have started bells ringing.”