Letter: They Keep Building Everywhere

Published on: 8 Oct, 2024
Updated on: 8 Oct, 2024

Green belt protection is a contentious issue

From M Durant

In response to: Reactions to News of GBC Asking for Reconsideration of Doubled Housing Target

They keep building everywhere in the country without adding the infrastructure: more hospitals, more doctors, more schools, more police, more prisons and so on.

In Guildford several areas have experienced water shortages and gas issues (currently in Wood Street Village they have dug trenches on the roads, they keep coming back and not finishing the job it’s been going on all throughout the summer on and off). Do they know what are they looking for?

It’s hard to get an appointment with a doctor or to see a NHS specialist or get basic tests done with the current number of people in the area.

All throughout the summer I have seen extensive antisocial behaviour in different areas of Guildford including the Castle Grounds, Southway and Park Barn. I can’t imagine how bad it will get with fewer police.

I agree with Jim Allen’s, sensible comment.

Responses to Letter: They Keep Building Everywhere

Helena Townsend Reply

October 8, 2024 at 11:30 am

More houses means more affordable homes for key workers like police whose salaries are unlikely to be in line with Guildford’s average house price.
- Jim Allen Reply
  
  October 8, 2024 at 11:19 pm
  
  At what point will Ms Townsend say enough is enough?
  
  More houses has never, ever reduced the cost of housing in recent times. Developers behaviour is simply motivated by profit. “Affordable” is not 80 per cent of the going rate but three times average salary.
  
  Build 10 house for rent, 20 will want them. Build 100 and 200 will demand them. Build a million and with current rates of population growth driven by the government’s failure to control immigration and it will still not be enough.
  
  But the brain washing continues.
- Jules Cranwell Reply
  
  October 9, 2024 at 6:10 am
  
  Where are these affordable homes? I do not see a single one in the massive estates being built around the Horsleys. £410,000 for a very small one bed flat cannot be classed as affordable.
John Redpath Reply

October 9, 2024 at 7:30 pm

Helena Townsend in theory is right – but in practice did adding additional lanes on the M25 improve the traffic flow or just bring more traffic onto the M25? Will adding more and more houses in the borough solve the problem or just attract more people to come and live here from other parts of the country or abroad?

Of course, we can build more housing but at the moment some of the houses being built are so shoddy that even cash strapped housing associations are not interested. There are houses remaining unsold in Ash because they are so poor in quality with an asking price far higher than their worth.

The point being made here though is that the infrastructure is not being put in place to support the increase in residents and the additional services needed by them. Also, not enough is being done to improve the roads that are getting more and more congested every day.
SCC and GBC have an estimated £20 million in unspent S106 monies (paid by developers to provide necessary amenities by the councils) but appear to be so disorganised that nothing is happening. I believe Guildford still doesn’t have a dedicated S106 officer and has no idea how much is in its S106 kitty or what it should be spent on.

Someone needs to get a grip at both GBC and SCC if the predicted 1,102 (up from around 560) homes per annum are to be built in our borough.

John Redpath is a former R4GV councillor.