Thursday 16 February 2012

Lib Dems 1 Countryside 0

Meadow soon to be a car park 
Despite the resolute opposition of local Hedge End Councillors, led by Cllr Derek Pretty (Grange Park), Eastleigh's Lib Dem cabinet has voted in favour of a car park and against a wildflower meadow at Hedge End station.

Although not a cabinet member, Cllr Pretty spoke against the scheme at the cabinet meeting on 9th February before rushing back to Hedge End to chair that evening's meeting of the Town Council's Finance and Administration Committee.  His ward colleague Cllr Louise Bloom, who is a cabinet member, voted against and requested her opposition be recorded in the minutes. 

Unfortunately for the nearby residents who will now have a noisy car park at the bottom of their gardens, and for the wildflowers and biodiversity of Hedge End, the trusty Lib Dem loyalist bulldozer came out of the garage to brush their objections aside and proceed with the next phase of the project.

At Wednesday's meeting of Hedge End Town Council, Cllr Pretty declared that he was "disappointed" in the outcome.  Cllr Bloom pointed out that the Local Area Committee will have another chance to vote on this when the Council applies to itself for planning permission. 

It will be interesting to see how Hedge End Town Council responds to that planning application when it is consulted.

Lib Dem election promise to stand up against more traffic








2 comments:

  1. Whats needed is something to give local residents the power to overide such decesions. A piece of legislation to empower the people. We could call it something like... localism!!!! Ah, too late the Coalition have already got that.

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  2. I used to live in Havendale, a few yards from Cllr Kyrle. You can't blame the boundary commission if developers don't stop when they come to the boundary of a civil parish!

    I was sat next to Cllr Kyrle and it looked like Cllr Pretty was looking at *me*. I guess I am just paranoid.

    Don't forget that Cllr Kyrle is also county councillor for much of Hedge End, and as Sgt O'Hanlon said, crime doesn't stop at the parish boundary any more than development does.

    Rupert was a fairly regular attendee (as county councillor) at the Town Council before he became a Town Councillor. He's a pretty conscientious guy, but I think he has too much on his plate.

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