Letter: What About Burpham?

Published on: 12 Jul, 2019
Updated on: 12 Jul, 2019

From Jim Allen

In response to: Judicial Reviews of Guildford’s Local Plan Get Legal Go-Ahead

Poor old Burpham, ignored in this legal process.

Gosden Hill will be far more devastating to the general principles of the green belt and lack of properly considered infrastructure, facts much rehearsed during the planning process. Sadly, the Burpham and Merrow communities have neither established parish nor private finances to argue the case, the legal root only open to the rich and monied.

So what of the future? Hopefully, these groups, when they have extricated their back yards from the Local Plan, I hope they remember their poor cousins and put their undoubted skills into ensuring those sites left in the plan are provided with the proper infrastructure and the effects on those communities are minimized. While wishing them Godspeed in their endeavours, I would hate to have to ever label them true Nimbies.

Responses to Letter: What About Burpham?

Ben Paton Reply

July 12, 2019 at 10:26 am

Burpham has a lot to complain of. The effects of the local plan on Burphham will be very very negative. Traffic through Burpham is already very bad. It will get worse.

But the ward does not help itself by voting for borough councillors who have stood up for this terrible Local Plan for years and years. Burpham’s problem is that the local Conservative and Lib Dem parties have consciously sacrificed it on the altar of a failed and bogus housing strategy. Martin Grant Homes might have had a greater influence on the Local Plan than the electors of Burpham.

It is time that it found some people who were keener to represent local residents than to spout sound bites and advertise their virtue.
Paul Bishop Reply

July 14, 2019 at 9:47 pm

I remember reading a comment on The Dragon from someone involved in the JR stating they weren’t a NIMBY but in fact a NIABY (not in anyone’s back yard). I’m yet to see anyone who genuinely seems to be interested in saving all of Guildford’s green belt. All we have are people opposing developments local to where they live. Whilst this is understandable, it certainly isn’t what will save all of the boroughs green belt and is the reason Burpham is being hung out to dry in the whole JR process.

If Mr Cranwell”s JR is genuinely funded by people across Guildford, I’m surprised it isn’t addressing the issues Burpham is going to face.