Rushy Bank reconsideration by West Oxfordshire

Wed 26 Sep 2018, 08:25 (last edited on Wed 26 Sep 2018, 08:35)

David and James, two views which show the compelling need for a planning system run, as it is designed to, on the basis of expert and balanced assessment by officers and contributing consultees and good non-political judgement by councillors.

While I obviously feel pretty strongly about the choice of location for this development, I feel just as strongly about i) the consequential impact this will have on development at the station and surrounding area and ii) what the handling of this application shows about the way our planning system is being run.

GWR's plan for 174 parking spaces on the flood plain field in front of the station have been on the table for well over a year now. We still wait to find out whether they think a raised or flood plain level car park is the worse of the evils. A raised deck on the existing low level car park could accommodate only 112 spaces (GWR want 270) and is allegedly not financially viable. The Rushy Bank site (and the adjoining one which Cornbury it seems also has housing plans for) are the only adjoining alternative. Or no more parking, and that's not an attractive one given what is said here about station parkers and the rail service.

And yet none of our elected representatives at any level appear to want to confront it. Some are so personally and politically committed to the Rushy Bank scheme they can't. Others claim it's not their responsibility while waiting for Rushy Bank to eventually be pushed through so they can say, "well there aren't many options are there?" If the town needs both as many think, it's Jefferson Piece or a similar site for the Rushy Bank scheme and the Rushy Bank site held back for the station should it be needed. That would be planning. The other way lies years of battle, more pain and a terrible planning outcome for the town. The current battle is about that outcome. And the system…

What we see with Rushy Bank, the Police House Hixet Wood scheme and elsewhere is a planning system where officers are trying to make decisions about development with developers behind closed doors. When officers have decided their position, the public and wider consultation is a coralling exercise / charade, the report to committee is one sided and Councillors are bullied by officers who can quote planning at them all day long to follow a recommendation. I have been to enough planning committees in the last 3 years to give numerous examples: the ones where Committee revolts either way are the most entertaining and revealing. Or Hixet Wood where officers ignored what committee decided by misminuting the meeting and issuing a consent anyway.

This is not the way the system is designed to work. Having so much power vested in a couple of unelected officers who spend most of their time talking to developers is a pretty obviously bad idea. It doesn't appear that any of our elected representatives have any interest in tackling this either.