Falmouth Housing Development Recommended For Approval

A controversial new housing development scheme on the outskirts of Falmouth has been recommended for approval by Cornwall Council planning officers.

Midas Commercial Development Ltd submitted revised plans for the construction of 94 houses off Bickland Water Road on land adjacent to St Budock Church. The plans include the provision of 33 affordable houses.

Although the original proposal for 154 houses was recommended for approval by the planning officer in February 2014, the planning committee objected on the grounds of the harm that the development would cause to the character and appearance of the area and that it would have an adverse impact on the setting of the church.

In December 2014 Midas Commercial Development Ltd appealed against the refusal by Cornwall Council to grant planning permission but the appeal was dismissed. The main issues were the effect of the proposed development on the setting of St Budock Church which is listed grade II* and the effect on the character and appearance of the area.

Since then the building company have scaled down the development and made the most recent application in September 2015 which takes into account the impact of the development on the views of the nearby church.

Midas director Steve Russell said: “We’ve worked hard to take on board the Inspector’s concerns and have come up with a scheme which we hope councillors will feel able to support.

‘Bull Field’ the site of the proposed development. Photo source Julia Conway

“We have significantly reduced the number and density of homes to create more open space, and are maintaining the historic footpath to the church. Crucially, we are proposing to gift two fields next to the church to the town council which has been identified by them for use as a cemetery. This would be legally binding on us as part of any planning permission and would not only protect the rural setting of the church, but also maintain separation between Falmouth and Budock.

“We believe this scheme would make a valuable contribution to Falmouth’s future housing needs including 35 per cent affordable homes, for which there is acute demand in the area.”

Falmouth resident Steve Tribes said: “I strongly object to these plans. The rural landscape around Falmouth is in danger of being systematically destroyed. Budock Water is in danger of becoming engulfed by the spread of housing estates. If this development goes ahead it will join Falmouth and Budock Water together.

“The proposed site is the buffer between Falmouth and Budock with the ancient little church town, which consists of St Budock Church and former old farm buildings at its heart. If building is allowed on this site it will destroy a quiet, peaceful, rural landscape, with lovely views across the field to the church, forever.

“The increase in traffic along Bickland Water Road would also be a major problem. It’s already a problem, due to the nearby school, industrial units and existing road junction. The building of 96 new houses on the proposed site would make matters much worse.”

Alison Goodman said: “I would really like to show my support for the new housing scheme. I have always rented and if the market stays the way it is, I will do so for the rest of my life. This is really disheartening, so it’s great to hear about affordable housing being proposed locally.”

Funding Secured For Glasney Playing Field

Work will soon be underway to improve the poor condition of Glasney playing field in Penryn as up to £165,000 funding has been made available.

Glasney Greenspace Regeneration Project (GGSRP), a volunteer organisation, have been working with Cornwall Council and Penryn Town Council to secure Section 106 funding.

GGSRP representative, Pip Carlton-Barnes said on their website: “In its current state the water-logged playing field is barely accessible for the larger part of the year and in recent weeks we have seen the removal of the dangerous goal posts.

“To date we have managed to get the poor drainage investigated and then funded by section 106 money…We have cleared many loads of fly-tipped rubbish from the valley and uncovered beautiful old hand built follies from beneath 30 or so years’ worth of vegetation. We have even planted 5000 daffodil bulbs to bring 5000 rays of sunshine to everyone who passes through.”

The old BMX track at Glasney Field. Photo source Julia Conway

Cornwall Council’s Public Space Officer, Donald Martin told Hook: “What we are doing at the moment is working very closely with the Town Council and the GGSRP group and money has been earmarked for that site.

 

“There are a number of priorities; one is drainage, another is tree works and there are footpath improvements to be done. The BMX track is a priority as well to repair it and bring it up to standard.

“The next part of the process is looking at the extent of the tree works and working with engineers to come up with a suitable plan for the footpaths and the main playing field. We are also working with a contractor on how we bring the skate park up to standard. When we have all that we together we will go back to the Town Council with costings. Then we will agree a programme of works. We are pushing to get that through this year.”

 

Falmouth University Students Create Escape Room

A group of students from Falmouth University are planning an exciting and innovative team-building exercise to be held on Monday evening, January 11, 2016.

The ‘Escape’ event has been devised by BiJun Pan and three of her fellow Creative Event Management classmates as part of their assessed coursework to help students develop their critical, logical and observation skills while having an enjoyable evening.

Ms Pan said: “The event is based on an immersive escape room situation. This involves a team of four, known to each other or not, entering a room where they will be consequently locked into. To escape the room, the team must find and solve cryptic clues, perplexing puzzles and mysterious riddles. However, to make it that much more engaging, all this must be done within 20 minutes of entering the room.”

Escape event flyer. Picture source BiJun Pan

The vision of the event is: “To develop essential skills whilst having a fun experience with friends, or enabling participants to meet new people in a socially interactive and immersive evening,” added Ms Pan.

The event will take place in the Production Space at the Academy of Music and Theatre Arts (AMATA) from 4pm to 9pm in ten sessions of 20 minutes. Participation is free of charge.

Anyone interested in taking part can book a slot here.