Public meeting arranged about proposed 10,000 homes

Welwyn Hatfield Council in conjunction with CPRE (Campaign to Protect Rural England) has arranged a public meeting to discuss the proposals for the East of England Plan.

The meeting, organised for Wednesday 14 February, will allow residents the opportunity to learn about the plan and how they can comment on the recommendations.

Just before Christmas, the Government published its proposed changes to the draft East of England Plan, prepared by the East of England Regional Assembly. Consultation on the proposals finishes on 9 March 2007.

The headline for Hertfordshire is that the Secretary of State has supported the EiP Panel recommendations to increase housing development in the county to 83,200 new homes before 2021. This will include large scale development around Welwyn Garden City and Hatfield.

The recommendations for Welwyn Hatfield are:

* An increase in dwelling allocation by 4,200 as previously proposed, bringing the total figure to 10,000.

* A need to carry out a Green Belt review looking up to 2031 and beyond, in order to accommodate further development in the borough. If that was to take into account the current rate of housing development it would suggest that the borough could be allocated a further 5,000 dwellings.

Welwyn Hatfield Council has concerns about whether the transport infrastructure, health and other services can cope with the extra homes and the impact it will have on the environment. 

Councillor Mandy Perkins, Executive Member for Planning says: “The meeting is your opportunity to learn about the proposals, hear our concerns as well as those from CPRE and to make your views known to us. Time is running out on the consultation process and I urge you to attend as this is the final opportunity we all have before the plan is finalised.”

The public meeting will take place at 7.30pm, 14 February 2007 at Campus West, Welwyn Garden City. You can find out more about the plan by visiting www.goeast.gov.uk.