Mr Alan Stone The Chairman of the Planning Committee [address]

?ames 2&ndman *+wner and occu ier) 9@ 1est 1a& [email] [ hone] 6@th March 6;"@

Application reference: P13/V2733/FUL 265 Dear Mr Stone, and all other members of the Planning Committee,

I have now scrutinised the lans! I have lived o osite the develo ment site since "###, thus I $now the site e%tremel& well! I would li$e to formall& ma$e the following ob'ections to the lan, based u on the following observations( ") The develop ent i! "ro!!l# o$t of scale for it! location! The ro osed com le% would not be out of lace, neither as out-of-town development *such as the +,one -eisure Par$ on .renoble /oad), nor as a city centre development *such as +%ford0s 1estgate Centre)! 2owever, the centre of 3otle& is neither an out-of-town location, nor the centre of a city! 3otle& is a 4uiet, safe, redominantl& residential suburb! The e%isting 1est 1a& Sho ing Centre, though sorel& in need of some maintenance, does not re4uire wholesale demolition and rebuilding! The ro osed develo ment is vastly over5si,ed for its location immediatel& ad'acent to residential ro erties! 6) The develop ent i! "ro!!l# o$t of character for it! location% 7lm0s Parade and the houses it faces *88 to 98 1est 1a&), the local ublic house *the Seacourt 3ridge), and the houses of ad'acent streets *Po lar /oad, 7lms /oad, Seacourt /oad, Arthra& /oad, etc!) are almost e%clusivel& "#:;0s bric$ buildings, none of them of more than two store&s0 height! The e%ce tions to this are the *"#89) somewhat brutalist bloc$s of 1est 1a& 2ouse, and 7lm0s Court, and the later .rant Thornton building! These e%ce tions are of little architectural merit( however the ro osed com le%es are bigger, both in height and in footprint, than these! Architecturall&, in terms of form and ro ortion, the ro osed lans a ear to be void of an& merit whatsoever< to be fran$, it would a ear as if the& were ut together on a =rida& afternoon b& built environment trainees using Photosho ! :) The planned car par&in" provi!ion i! ill'!$ited to the develop ent% .round5level car ar$s with multi le entr& oints that are ad'acent to sho s, as is currentl& the case, are essential for ease of access! I regularl& use either the car ar$ ad'acent to the Coo store, or that ad'acent to the Tesco store on m& commute to wor$! There are usuall& s aces available in the former, and alwa&s laces in the latter! I can ar$, enter the store, urchase m& lunch, and leave, in a ro%imatel& five minutes! +ften the cars ad'acent to mine have also changed during m& brief visit to the store< the turnover is e%tremel& ra id! >ow imagine tr&ing to do this via one s ecific entr& oint to the com le%, via barriers, driving down subterranean channels and ar$ing recisel& so as to avoid the concrete illars that characterise multi5store& car ar$s< after this, emerging from the car ar$ via lift, escalator or stairwell, wal$ing across the com le% to the h& ermar$et, ma$ing the urchase then returning to the car and e%iting the car ar$! It is self5evident that such a rocess will ta$e a number of times longer to do as enabled b& the current arrangement! The new sho front is to abut 1est 1a&, and will inevitabl& lead to cars sto ing in the street to dro off or ic$ u eo le! I should li$e to cite two laces in +%ford where this alread& ha ens( Summertown and Cowle&!

An& attem t to sho ra idl& in Summertown is st&mied b& the chronic lac$ of readil&5accessible ar$ing! The la&5b& ad'acent to the sho s on 3anbur& /oad is cluttered with motorists, each waiting for a lace to become available! The ad'acent streets are deluged b& others driving slowl& round, westwards along >orth Parade, south along 1oodstoc$ /oad, then eastwards along +a$thor e /oad or 3eechcroft /oad, then bac$ again, north along 3anbur& /oad, in the ho e that further s aces in the la&5b& will become available ne%t time the& ass b&! All ad'acent residential streets are strictl& regulated, at e% ense to the council and to the inconvenience and e% ense of residents A as the& need to be! I need to ass Summertown fre4uentl&, and I rarel& sto because it0s sim l& too much hassle! In Cowle&, ad'acent to the Tem lars S4uare Sho ing centre on 3etween Towns /oad, the street is clogged in a similar fashion to the 3anbur& /oad at Summertown, b& cars dro ing eo le off, ic$ing eo le u < often vehicles are tem oraril& abandoned with ha,ard lights flashing whilst the occu ants ni into a sho on the road front! This, des ite there being a large free car ar$ o osite for the ?ohn Allen Centre( however, it ta$es about ten minutes to wal$ from a ar$ing s ace in the ?ohn Allen Centre to Tem lars S4uare, which includes crossing a bus& road A so it0s onl& worth ar$ing if &ou have more substantial sho ing to underta$e! It0s no good at all if one sim l& wishes to urchase a sandwich A unless of course one leaves one0s car with ha,ards flashing, and ris$s incurring the wrath of other motorists, and the ossibilit& of collecting a ar$ing tic$et! All5in5all, the current arrangement at 3otle& is e%traordinaril& convenient b& com arison! @) The develop ent (ill e)acer*ate a !erio$! traffic pro*le % 3etween a ro%imatel& B("C and B(@Cam, on two or three mornings er wee$, and later on Saturda& mornings, stationar& traffic 4ueues ast the drivewa&s of >o0s 8859@ 1est 1a& *and the e%its of 7lms /oad and Po lar /oad)! The onl& wa& to enter the traffic is to straddle both the athwa& and the bus lane until an eastbound driver allows access to the 4ueue! This is inconvenient, and can be also be dangerous to edestrians, c&clists, and the drivers themselves! 7ntering the traffic flow can ta$e a while if the traffic is gridloc$ed, as fre4uentl& occurs during ea$ flow times, and at an& time if there is a roblem on the A:@ or if there are traffic wor$s on the 3otle& /oad! These traffic 4ueues are articularl& frustrating to 1est 1a& residents, as drivewa& access is directl& and adversel& affected! Although Doric claim that traffic volume along 1est 1a& will be reduced b& the develo ment, I wish to olitel& suggest that such s eculation is nonsensical! There is ever& indication that traffic flow will be substantiall& increased, es eciall& at wee$ends! This will greatl& e%acerbate a roblem that is alread& serious! C) The develop ent (ill a&e it i po!!i*le for re!ident! of +o,! 66'7- .e!t .a# to t$rn ri"ht onto .e!t .a# *towards Cumnor 2ill D 7&nsham /oad)! This is a roblem uni4ue to these residents, but a serious one( In order to turn right from m& house, i!e! in order to drive u Cumnor 2ill or 7&nsham /oad, I must first turn left into 1est 1a& because the long traffic island between the carriagewa&s ma$es it im ossible to turn right! I must then turn right into 1estminster 1a&, and turn right again into Cha el 1a& or into Arthra& /oad< both these roads will then allow me to turn left into 1est 1a&, and thus head westwards! >ote that is nearl& im ossible, and dangerous, to ma$e a E5turn in 1est 1a& *in front of 7lms /oad), due to the traffic flow! In the lan Cha el 1a& is to be abolished, and Arthra& /oad is no longer to be a through road! Thus in order to head westwards, to reach a destination on Cumnor 2ill or on the 7&nsham /oad, it will become necessar& to ma$e a massive detour via

Farnell0s 2ill, or go via the A@6; Cumnor 2ill 3& ass, a 'ourne& that can easil& be two5or5 three5fold further! 8) The develop ent (ill deprive # ho$!e fro o!t (inter !$n!hine/ and fro a con!idera*le a o$nt of da#li"ht% This afflicts all houses *>o0s 8; A 98) on the art of 1est 1a& that face the ro osed develo ment! It is unclear recisel& how man& store&s the latest lan intends for the construction on the o osite side of 1est 1a&, but it is realistic to state that this would be between five and seven! =rom the front garden of m& house, this re resents an angle of elevation of some :C to C; degrees! In contrast, the e%isting two5store& 7lm0s Parade, currentl& o osite most of these houses, and being further distanced from them the car ar$ in front of it, offers an angle of elevation of a ro%imatel& "; degrees! The new develo ment is indeed a massive obstruction! 9) The develop ent (ill deprive # ho$!e fro an# rea!ona*le vie(% The current south5facing views from m& house overloo$ 7lm0s Parade and 7lm0s /ise A which is fairl& green! The develo ment will re lace this view with its own bric$5and5glass faGade! I should re5iterate that it, if it resembles that shown in the lans, is not a rett& faGade *see oint ")! B) The develop ent (ill re!$lt in e)ce!!ive noi!e in a 0$iet predo inantl# re!idential area% 1est 1a& is a 4uiet and safe area at an& time of night! The im osition of the develo ment, with its numerous amenities almost on the ver& doorste of so man& homes, will inevitabl& entail noise and disru tion similar to that found in an& cit& centre at night, as clients come and go from the com le% throughout the evening, and ossibl& throughout the night! Traffic noise, currentl& at ver& low levels throughout the evening and night, will conse4uentl& show a mar$ed increase during these times! #) The 1!t$dent2 re!idential develop ent (ill re!$lt in !evere locali!ed par&in" pro*le !% I wor$ at +%ford 3roo$es Eniversit&, and I am well5aware of the numerous issues that arise from students and their visitors ar$ing cars near to universit& cam uses and halls of residences! The Eniversit& goes to great lengths to activel& minimise the im act of student ar$ing! This includes the rovision of e%tensive ar$ing facilities, and, in man& cases, the re4uirement that students contractuall& agree not to ar$ in residential areas! Enless similar measures are rigorousl& enforced for residents of the ro osed student accommodation *and it is difficult to see how this can be done), then ar$ing will be severel& com romised in local streets! >ote that the construction of a bloc$ of flats on 1est 1a&, close to McDonald0s, without ade4uate ar$ing facilities, has alread& resulted in considerable roblems for other local residences! Additional residents0 ar$ing Aonl& schemes, and the inconvenience and e% ense caused to bona fide residents in those streets is the inevitable outcome! ";) The develop ent (ill re!$lt in e)ce!!ive li"ht poll$tion in a predo inantl# re!idential area! The lans to e%tensivel& light u the faGade so as to advertise its resence, using bright multi5coloured lights, as is im lied in the lans, is wholl& ina ro riate for the redominantl& residential area immediatel& ro%imal to the develo ment! "") The develop ent (ill re!$lt in e)ce!!ive air poll$tion in a predo inantl# re!idential area! The increased traffic flow, including a considerable increase in the number of commercial vehicles necessar& to service the ro osed develo ment, will result in a substantial degradation of air 4ualit& in this redominantl& residential area!

"6) The *$ildin" (or&! for the develop ent (ill ca$!e e)ce!!ive d$!t and dirt depo!it! on propertie! in the vicinit#! The e%tensive and rolonged building wor$s entailed b& the develo ment at such a close ro%imit& to residences will result in considerable 4uantities of airborne dust and dirt that will settle on them! ":) The *$ildin" (or&! for the develop ent (ill ca$!e $nrea!ona*le con!tr$ction noi!e to propertie! in the vicinit#! The noise of angle5grinders, ercussion drills, ratchet drivers, circular saws, and innumerable other ower tools will combine with that of the reversing bee s of construction and deliver& vehicles, and the with the Hbonging and goingling0 of scaffolding and metalwor$, to com rise an Bam5to5C m caco hon& for the man& residences within a stone0s throw! And it will last two &ears! "@) 3$e!tion! over the credi*ilit# of the developer!! Doric0s ro osed lans, as accessed from htt (DDwww!doric ro erties!comDbotle&D *on 6@th March 6;"@) feature numerous grammatical errors A and even H3otel&0 *sic) is mis5s elled! The mis5 laced a ostro he on the sho front of the Hvibrant new ia,,a0 is articularl& galling! "C) The develop ent i! not (anted or re0$ired% A wholesale destruction and rebuild of the sho ing facilities at 1est 1a& was never desired! A rewor$, not demolition, of the 1est 1a& Centre is desirable! Sensible and sustained moderate investment in and maintenance of the Centre would revent it from degenerating into a tac$& and tatt& lace to sho ! The front of 7lm0s Parade is 'ust fine as it is! To demolish 7lm0s Parade would be to destro& the uni4ue heart of 3otle&, and ensure that 3otle& becomes indistinguishable from an& one of hundreds thousands of faceless, mediocre, mind5numbing sho ing arcades that litter the globe! I wish than$ &ou in advance for ta$ing these observations into consideration! Fours sincerel&,

?ames 2&ndman!