Rotherham Council to Consult Dinnington on Future House Building Next Week

Rotherham Council will be holding a drop in session in Dinnington next week to tell local residents about plans to build new houses and industrial units over the next 15 years.

6 Nov 2014      14:00 – 19:00   Dinnington Resource Centre, Laughton Road, Dinnington

Please do go along and have your say, also look online at http://rotherham.limehouse.co.uk/portal/planning/sp/finaldraftsandp and register your views for the record.

I would urge everyone who cares about our local area to take part and have your say, it’s no good doing nothing now and moaning later folks!

Massive New Industrial Estate to be Build Near Todwick

One of the more surprising elements of Rotherham Council’s Local Plan, this development would see a huge amount of local green belt beside the new A57 roundabout converted to an industrial site almost as big as Todwick itself.

Have your say on the consultation here.

Housing Plans for Dinnington and Anston Revealed!

The final chapter of the Local Plan consultation has now begun! Rotherham council have revealed full details of the sites that will see new housing and commercial development over the next 15 years, much of it on our green belt.

Some of the highlights:

1. 240 new homes on fields behind Wentworth Way, Wentworth Way to be converted to a through road to service the development.

2. Hundreds of new homes at Throapham on fields behind Dinno Comp.

3. Miners Welfare ground to be partially sold to housing developers after a secret deal struck by Dinnington Town Council and MP Kevin Barron.

4. New industrial estate on green belt fields near Todwick Crossroads.

5. Pasture land in Anston to be used to housing.

6. Gypsy Camp to be built in South Anston near Kiveton Station.

Have your say on the proposals by clicking here.

A Government Inspector Gives the Verdict on Council Plans for Dinnington

Government inspector Richard Hollox has largely green lighted plans to build 1500 new homes in Dinnington, 1000 of them on green belt land.

The report in full is here.

Some highlights:

Dinnington suffers from “an undue preponderance of vacant units and
charity and value shops”

“Dinnington East, will be removed from the Green Belt”

Dinnington has “the character of a small, bustling town with frequent bus services to
Rotherham and Sheffield”

Greenbelt land to the east of Dinnington (Lakeland Drive area) will be used as this is easier for developers to build on.

The high quality agricultural land will be worth losing as it means 700 houses can be build right next to Lakeland Drive.

No new schools, doctors, road or other infrastructure.

Other areas would have required a larger investment in schools, etc. from developers.

Rotherham Labour Party Target Dinnington Greenbelt Again!

Rotherham Council have unveiled their latest “consultation” in responses to comments made on their local plan by a government inspector who must approve before the house building on greenbelt extravaganza can begin.

Some highlights:

1. No priority given to brownfield first, lots of people even greenbelt campaigners believed the Council when they said they would go brownfield first, but they have now confirmed what a lot of us always knew, there is no instrument left in planning law to do this.

Therefore developers can leave brownfield sites derelict and go straight to green field.

2. The Council intend to set the level of Community Infrastructure Levy (a charge developers must pay to contribute to local infrastructure) ridiculously low in Dinnington and North Anston. It will be cheaper for developers to build on our countryside than derelict council estates in Sheffield.

3. An extra 200 and odd houses planned for Dinnington, the majority on greenbelt with no investment in local amenities and infrastructure.

4. No new retail developments, just 16% of Rotherham’s industrial units that will be moved out here.

5. Five percent of all houses in Rotherham to be built on our green belt.

Have your say on the consultation HERE.

Rotherham Council move to raise Council Tax by 2%

RMBC Cabinet have put forward plans to raise Council Tax by approximately 2% for the next year, raising an additional half million or so of revenue.

In other news:

1. Dinnington Town Council up in arms over (proposed) closure of Sure Start centre.

2. Anston Town Council a bit less so, Councillors saying that the centre was not well used and Anston is not a deprived area. Hmmmm!

3. Dinnington Town Council refuse to record a vote of confidence in Dinnington’s relationship with RMBC.

4. Rotherham Council told to build 3000 extra houses, Dinnington’s greenbelt once again in the cross hairs!

5. Rotherham Council refuse to transfer Birkdale Avenue playing field to local ownership, say they want to hold onto the land for commercial reason as it may be used for a housing development.

Plans Revealed for Birkdale Avenue Playing Field

The developer Taylor Wimpey has revealed it’s plans to develop the Rotherham Council owned playing field at the end of Birkdale Avenue.

To summarise they plan to build a load of houses over it and replace it with a much smaller open space a long way from where local children play currently.

This is where the plot lies:

Having been previously told by the developer that they had no interest in the playing field I am not happy, I am also less than thrilled with Rotherham Council who seem to be willing to see what little recreational land we have left built on.

Well last week I handed in 150 evidence forms claiming the footpaths that people currently use on that land, so I hope the owners of the new houses will be OK with me walking through their back gardens and riding my bike through their dining room.

Full PDF plans are available here and here.

LoveDinnington in the Local Press

My response to Jo Burton was in the Advertiser and Guardian this week, the Advertiser especially read like a Victims of RMBC Support Group meeting, not much love for the Council this week!

Jo has sent me another reply so for balance I am happy to reproduce it here.

We are Proud to Launch our Footpaths Campaign!

Rotherham Council are making plans to build over 240 houses on the greenbelt land behind Birkdale Avenue, Wentworth Way, Turnberry Way, Belfry Way and Moortown Avenue

This land has been used by local residents for walking, cycling and horse riding for decades, but none of the footpaths we use are legally recognised, therefore access to many of the footpaths could be lost if the houses are built.

We would like to see the local paths recognised legally by having them placed on the Council’s definitive map. You can help by filling in the witness statement on our leaflet if you have used any of the footpaths shown overleaf for the last 20 years or more. We will then present this to the Council as evidence that the paths should be entered onto the definitive map. The Council have a legal duty to investigate our claims.

We are distributing our leaflet locally to ask for support from the immediate community who use these paths regularly (or semi-regularly, that’s still valid!) You can ALSO DOWNLOAD IT HERE!

The slick, sophisticated marketing machine at our disposal has swung into action (me on my bike)

The paths are shown below:

1. Lakeland Drive bus stop to Swinston Hill Woods, following field boundary behind Turnberry Way, Wentworth Way and on following power lines.
2. Swinston Hill Road to boundary of field, linking up with footpath 1.
3. Birkdale Avenue to Swinston Hill footpath across playing fields and also diagonally across playing fields.
4. Birkdale Avenue to field boundary passing entrance to Wentworth Way.
5. From gate at Wentworth Way across field to link with footpaths 1 and 2.
6. Swinston Hill Woods to Lakeland Drive across fields arriving near Fairways shop.

To enter a valid claim for these footpaths we need to prove at least 20 years usage.

If you would like to take part please download the leaflet HERE!

Rotherham Council Announce Housebuilding Sites for Dinno! The Wait is Over! (Updated)

The consultation for the final lap is now here and we can reproduce RMBC’s plan for Dinno below:

Just a quick point to dispel a myth that keeps going around… None of these houses will be built by the Council, they are all private. RMBC would like us to think they can use existing laws to force the developer to build them 20% affordable or social, but the government is in the process of abolishing this rule. Greenbelt sites are prime locations and will almost certainly provide 4-5 bedroom “executive” homes.

First thoughts:

They appear to have dropped the idea of a massive urban extension near Lakeland Drive.

300 new houses for Throapham now, Another 500 later?

240 new houses for Lakeland Drive

What is happening to Dinnington Rec Ground?

Space for 200 or so houses reserved in Anston

New Gypsy camp for Kiveton? (See below)

Links:

RMBC downloads

Settlement Map for Dinno/Anston

Details for Dinno

Settlement Map for Kiveton

Details for Kivvo