Published: Thursday, 11th September, 2008 8:30am

Neighbours stunned by plans to build 900 homes

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UP to 900 homes could be built across the last picturesque green space in Tilehurst.

Developers stunned neighbours when they presented the results of their five-day public consultation on Tuesday.

More than 200 members of the public made it standing-room only at the Calcot Centre in High View to hear Blue Living outline its draft plan for the Pincents Hill site, and so many people turned up that a second meeting had to be held afterwards to accommodate those who could not get in.

Blue Living, and its sister company Beyond Green, bought the 37 acre site at the beginning of the year and began a design enquiry last Thursday which involved asking residents and stakeholders, including adjacent landowners and the parish council, what they would like to see built.

Chief executive Jonathon Smales said: "We are here to present to you the ideas that have come out of this process and that is all.

"This is not the statutory planning process, it's being done well in advance of that.

"We have no hidden agenda. We are open and transparent. We have tried our best to record the concerns and suggestions all the way through this process and we will produce a report that will be sent out to everyone who has attended over the five days."

The designers displayed a map showing the development including a main access road leading from the A4, to the west of Sainsbury's Savacentre, through the centre of the proposed site and then out at the north end of Pincents Lane - into Little Heath Road and City Road.

It was also revealed that the developers are likely to submit an application for between 700 and 900 homes but residents were left stunned when urban designer Paul Murrain revealed the company also wants to get hold of parish council-owned land to the east of Sainsbury's.

That would involve a different A4 access lined by houses with a landscaped public park. He said: "If we did that we believe as a result we would have a far better piece of development overall. It would be infinitely better."

But, speaking afterwards, Tilehurst Parish Council chairman Jean Gardner said: "As far as we are concerned it is sacred land and it is not for sale. As the parish council we only look after it anyway, it was bought for the public with public money."

Reading West Tory parliamentary candidate Alok Sharma told the meeting: "I came here with an open mind but it's starting to become closed after what I have heard. We need to get the views of everybody. We will put out a survey to every household in Tilehurst and Calcot, publish the results and then take them to the planning office and council."

Blue Living's Mr Smales also said he hopes to lodge a planning application by the end of the year, starting the five-year building programme in approximately 15-18 months' time.

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