Care village will destroy beauty spot, say residents

1:00pm Wednesday 16th May 2012 in Wallingford

Artist Lucienne de Mauny, 58, right, her husband Tony Fletcher, 72, left, and Susie Ibbotson, centre, are leading opposition to the plans Artist Lucienne de Mauny, 58, right, her husband Tony Fletcher, 72, left, and Susie Ibbotson, centre, are leading opposition to the plans

AN area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in Wallingford will be damaged forever if planners allow a new care village for the elderly to be built, according to residents.

They are campaigning against a planning application by CABI (Centre for Agricultural Bioscience International) to build 80 apartments, 49 care units and a 64-bed care home on the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty at Crowmarsh Gifford.

CABI, which is based in Nosworthy Way, Wallingford, would also build a new headquarters on the site and developers say the plan would generate 70 new jobs as well as guaranteeing that 170 existing jobs stay in the area.

Residents living nearby are objecting to the application, which they say will overshadow a much-loved circular walk linking Wallingford’s two bridges.

Artist Lucienne de Mauny, 58, her husband Tony Fletcher, 72, and Susie Ibbotson are leading opposition to the plans.

Ms de Mauny said: “This is a wonderfully tranquil area, and an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, so it should be protected.

“A habitat for bats and owls will be destroyed and this wonderful circular walk will be completely overshadowed.”

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Comments(9)

Wallingford2 says...
10:28am Thu 17 May 12

So, a local business and employer wants to update a very run down site, provide new jobs and much need facilities and the NIMBY's are objecting? There's a suprise! If you actually look at the plans, the footprint is identical, the height of the buildings are identical and the entire site cannot even be seen from these residents properties......one is approx half a mile away! All works are contained within the existing site and this habitat being destroyed is absolute nonesense. Maybe they'd prefer it if CABI closed the site, left it derelict and let the squatters or travellers move in?

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happyhappyjoyjoy says...
12:56pm Thu 17 May 12

CABI is a wonderful resource and it would be a real shame to see it closing/moving because of a few wrong minded individuals. From what I have seen of the plans they are well thought out and very sensitive to fact they boarder the AONB.

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LORD PETER MACVEY 0X2 6EG says...
4:39pm Thu 17 May 12

Ms de Mauny said: “This is a wonderfully tranquil area, and an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, so it should be protected.

And go to hell with people that need care. You must be so selfish and locked in your own little world to have an opinion like that. We had a word for people like you 40 years ago that I can't put here. So selfish will suffice.

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Woodcote01 says...
5:12pm Thu 17 May 12

Wallingford2 needs to look more carefully at the plans. The proposed new office is outside the current built area and on its own bigger than the existing offices. The development of the care village is in addition to that and is very substantially greater than the current office building. All in all a very significant and unwarrented incursion into the AONB with its attendant traffic, noise and light pollution. Plenty of other sites available for development in the district without having to build in the countryside.

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aliej says...
8:22am Fri 18 May 12

yet again people of Wallingford not wanting any changes to what will become a dead town if they keep fighting every proposal. I bet if they were chic apartments full of waitrose shoppers there would be no problems with the developement.

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Wallingford2 says...
9:24am Fri 18 May 12

Woodcote01.....where do you suggest this new development go then? All the derelict areas in Wallingford have been sympathetically re-devloped over the past few years. Have you not seen the other NIMBY signs along Winterbrook and Wantage Road to that people think of other spots to develop? Spoiling my view with their yellow and pink signs, distracting drivers with their signs, damaging council owned property, illegally putting up signage every 10 yards.....mutter mutter.....moan moan.

There are 5, maybe 6 houses that are within half a mile of CABI.....wonder who could be complaining? Unlike the new employees, building contractors, onsite services, etc etc etc who'll be more than happy to see this go ahead, not to mention it's new residents, both youtng and old.

You stick to your end of the hill....we'll worry about what's going on at the Wallingford end.

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Chilloxon says...
10:29am Fri 18 May 12

So I'm reading this report to my wife and she echoed the comment about local residents...
What Residents.
Guess that'll be the Winterbrook Mafia then.
Won't be happy until everyone the other side of the Medical Practice give up on the town completely.

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jimmy muir says...
3:55pm Fri 18 May 12

I know this a little off subject, but Winterbrook has been mentioned in these dispatches, but has anybody seen the latest and utterly shameful suggestion by SODC (Anne Ducker/Mark Gray & co?) that Winterbrook should become a Conservation Area?

SODC should be ashamed of themselves, this is not just scrapping the bottom of the barrel, this looking below it!

This suggestion alongside all the printing, administraion, postage costs etc are a complete waste of Local Council Tax Payers money - Mine and yours. being squandered on protecting an area that is not a conservation area, just another street in WALLINGFORD, albeit that it lies within the parish boundary of Cholsey & Winterbrook!

SODC should be made accountable for this and heads should roll!!!

Jimmy

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rxe281 says...
6:23pm Thu 31 May 12

One development after another within the Thames green corridor. These include the hydrographic office and solar panel array, the now derilict Carmel site, the new hideous Lister Wilder insustrial unit, the new ( and hardly used ) Oxford Uni boat house, the massive residential development that is Site A, the CABI development itself which has now proven to not be future proof. There are far less environmentally sensitive areas around that are not with AONB. All Wallingford needs is another 300 old people then it really will be like a zombie town.

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