Other Comments
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Other Comments Issue: Open space 68. I welcome that there is a 'Retained green open space (RGOS)' between Helston and Lowertown. Please can you tell me what this means and what protection this gives against residential planning applications on this land. A recent planning application PA12/7435 - land adjacent to Granite Court was refused. Is this land now legally protected against development? As a Lowertown resident, I am very concerned that that Helston should not spread further north. Officer response: The comments received concerning the retained open space and I can advise that although the land will not be legally protected, the framework is a tool that can be used by planning officers to help inform them when determining planning applications. Action: Ensure comments are relayed back to steering group for Helston Town Framework. Issue: Transportation 20. Helston needs a green transport strategy! Compared to other Cornish towns Helston appears not to suffer from congestion. Road improvements should therefore not be a priority in the short term. The aim should be in improving access to the town centre with the emphasis on bus/cycling/walking in order to reduce congestion, pollution, energy use and noise. 29. There are no plans either for additional roads to relieve the already congested traffic. 34. The overwhelming need is for an improved B3297 road. At present all road traffic heading down the A30 towards Helston has to go either through Truro or through Redruth, both choices creating congestion and frustration. Improvements to B3297 do not need to be major, just enough to enable two wide vehicles to pass without needing to stop or reverse, plus a new piece of road linking to the A30 without going through a built-up area. This upgrade would, I submit, be by far the biggest single contribution to the future prosperity of the town of Helston and its surrounding area. It would repay its cost many times 58. Already priced and designed by Highways [ref. Peter Tatlow] Residents of Cross St have demanded that Penhellaz Hill is closed to through traffic excepting emergency vehicles, cyclists, horses and Pedestrians. The ward County Councillor and Town Council are in receipt of a petition supported by local residents.[over 50 signatures] using Penhellaz Hill , Cross St and Church Hill to access the A394 Penzance Road. On street parking is already in short supply. This affecting commerce. U4 is one of the last remaining open spaces and should be retained as such. The access road appears to be un - adopted. There may indeed be no vehicular right of way. Consideration be given to an “A394 – B3297 – Trewennack” link road to reduce all traffic on the through town routes permanently. Current one way system in Godolphin Road /Wendron St appears to not only cut off the town centre from its large population centres in the east of the town but also renders it difficult for fast emergency response to the town centre from the east , the Police station is trapped in a one way system ,the fire station also has an extended route , as inevitably do ambulances. The current system also makes the bottom of Wendron St very noisy and polluted with vehicles straining to get up the hill, surely it’s better to work with gravity than against it! I would propose two way traffic from Turnpike to Cades Pk and a reversal of traffic flow in Wendron St., this would eliminate much of the noise and pollution which currently makes Wendron St an unpleasant place to shop or walk. Obviously this would necessitate Coinagehall St becoming primarily one way “down hill” which would also allow for space to create proper bus stops, herringbone parking and introduce more on street short stay commercially friendly free parking. Opportunity for an archeological inspection of the site of the Chapel of our Lady ,gaol and the Duchy Officers House which once stood in the middle of Coinagehall St near the junction with Lady St. Perhaps even eventually using this site for the creation of a public transport hub site etc. Construction of access slip roads on the A30 to create a junction with the B3302 Mellanear Rd or Wheal Alfred Rd at Hayle which would finally create a viable road route to/from Helston and The Lizard as well as removing traffic which currently has to access the district by routes through Truro, Redruth, Camborne and Hayle, benefiting all four towns. Some further upgrades to the Hayle – Helston route would be inevitable. This could be a HGV preferred route into the area for commercial and airport access. There is also a substantial area of derelict land at the rear of Penview Crescent , currently brownfield derelict garages , this should be identified as a potential development site, it has good vehicle access To Penview Cres.and also good pedestrian access to Meneage St. I spoke to Matthew Brown at the Helston Framework meeting day at Helston One stop shop. 59. Improved links to the A30 are urgently required. The Redruth- Helston road is seriously inadequate for use by heavy vehicles. Officer response: Comments noted; in respect of concerns relating to transportation, work is currently underway on the transport modelling for Helston and accordingly these comments will be fed through that process. This work will lead to the development of a Transport Strategy for the town, to compliment the Town Framework. However, it is very unlikely that significant new/improved links to the A30 could be created due to the scale of costs that such works are likely to generate, without any known funding streams Action: Relay comments back to Transportation. Issue: Town Centre 20. I agree that re-vitalising the town centre must be the No.1 priority. The role of Town Centre Manager is key to this. Recent schemes/events and publications to draw ordinary Helstonians the short distance into town do work, please keep it up! Can we please charge out of town retailers the 'correct' rates? Officer response: Comments noted. Action: Ensure comments are relayed back to steering group. Issue: Heat Mapping Assessment 20. The Urban Extension Assessment Report states that 'it was not deemed necessary or essential that the Heat Mapping Assessment would form part of the Helston Town Framework.' I strongly disagree; this omission is a grave misjudgement and contradicts the reports aims for objective assessment. This is an essential first step if Helston is to contribute to Cornwall council’s targets for future reductions in fuel and energy use and the expansion of renewable energy generation. Officer response: Comments noted. Action: Ensure that comments are relayed to relevant managers. Issue: Sustainability Appraisal 20. There is no evidence or information in the Urban Extension Assessment Report that this has been undertaken. This is required by legislation and it is disappointing that this has been side stepped at consultation stage. Officer response: Comment noted; however, a Sustainability Appraisal has been undertaken as part of the Town Framework process. Action: Ensure that the Sustainability Appraisal is made publicly accessible. Issue: Housing The number of 900 new homes seems excessive for the size of the town as at present there are no plans for sufficient extra school places that are bound to be needed. Also there are no plans either for additional roads to relieve the already congested traffic. 34. If 625 families currently need affordable homes, increasing at 60 families per year, the need will have risen to 1825 families over 20 years. Taking the maximum figures proposed, 900 houses in Helston and another 900 in the Lizard Community Area and assuming that as many as half of these will be affordable, we shall still have 925 families needing homes in 2030. In other words, we shall have planned for our housing situation to get 50% worse over 20 years. This is intolerable and must not be allowed to happen. I propose 900 houses in Helston with 50% affordable and 1200 houses in the Community Area with 80% affordable. Even this arithmetic means we shall only reduce the need for affordable homes from 625 families to 415 over 20 years, but at least it’s heading in the right direction. And it would help many of the smaller villages remain viable with their own primary schools, post offices, etc. 59. It must be doubtful whether continuing to build so many more houses is really sustainable or desirable especially in times of recession. It will inevitably lead to overstretched infrastructure and to social and employment problems, as well as changing the over-all character of the town. However, the sites identified for housing in the framework following your careful analysis of the available options are clearly the best and most logical locations. Officer response: Comments noted; those comments will be fed back to the Local Plan Team whom deals with the projected levels of growth for the twenty year plan (20-10-2030). Action: Relay comments back to Local Plan Team. Issue: Education 29. A fourth junior school is badly needed already and a small provision of just 60 extra places each at St Michaels and Nansloe School seems like a drop in the ocean compared to what maybe needed if Helston's population is to be increased by 2-3000 people in the next few years. Most people buying these new houses are likely to be young families and young couples. The main Helston Secondary School already wants to expand and pupils from the surrounding area come there as well as Helston pupils. Using land from the existing school site for housing and developing an alternative site for a new school in an area which could reduce traffic congestion through the town may be an option.