What we say... desperate need for more homes in the city . However we question the maxim that we must keep building provided enough houses tomorrow for all who want them, is that going to stop the demand? The M25 NEWS but already they are planning additional lanes. Our Summer 2015 challenge to Brighton planners is to exploit the Dear neighbour... size of 482 football pitches!), lobby to exclude the When I talk to people in the village about why they moved (transient) student population from those requiring . Unspoilt, quiet, nice people are all adjectives issues of the city to central government ie: the sea to we use to describe our lovely village. Now wind forward 7 or 8 years, how many times do you think we might use these the south and Downs to the north, which naturally words if the developers get their way under plans to exploit restricts our capacity to build. And who says people the Urban Fringe? As many villagers know, the City Plan v1 want to live in high cost housing on the urban fringe anyway? Unless of course developers are inclined to development on a number of different fronts to prevent be altruistic and provide lots more social housing. this from happening. This the latest newsletter of ORPS (Ovingdean Residents & Preservation Society) continues What next? the theme of previous issues of campaigning against wide To date there have been very active campaigns scale new development in Ovingdean. The question for those who live in Ovingdean is, are you prepared to allow large scale development to happen? Vale. In all cases the opposition has been lead by a Russell Smith, Chairman ORPS small group of individuals who are passionate about [email protected] 01273 304482 the environment they live in. ORPS in all cases is providing support both in terms of resources and OVINGDEAN DEVELOPMENTS We are often accused of being NIMBYs (Not In My the village to be engaged in the debate. We are still Back Yard) by those outside the village, indeed only concerned about another site behind the farms that recently a senior planning expert from the University is in the urban plan and more recently the ownership of Brighton said in a conference ( report in the Argus of Ovingdean Hall school which has recently closed on 29th June) “ I think the urban fringe is key….there is under question. Financial support is always comfortably in their houses and saying “...you know the sheer weight of letters to the council, lobbying councilors, MPS etc are just as effective. Please keep supporting, we need to keep our village fringe sites around the racecourse, Woodingdean, the way it is so in years to come we can continue to Rottingdean and Ovingdean as key development tell people the nice things about living here. prospects. Yes, we could be termed NIMBYs but those who live in the village know what the consequences of adding a few hundred more houses would do to our local infrastructure. The roads in the village are already under great strain in the rush hour (see separate report overleaf), getting a doctors appointment is never easy and our local schools are already under pressure from having to cope with the existing number of children who live in the area. It may seem only a few hundred houses to the planners but we know what a disproportionate impact this would have on our lives. www.ovingdean.co.uk ORPS fees The recent introduction of the 20mph speed limit in so as a result we are keeping the annual fee the same parts of the village is to be welcomed but our position at £4 per household. Remember this is a voluntary remains unchanged, in that the councils highways fee. We are planning to collect the 2015/16 fees planning department are still refusing to admit that we during September so when our representatives call, please give generously. We do however reserve the road improvements such as chicanes on Greenways right to come back to villagers if we need funds to also show your speed limit and also more recently a but details will be provide at the time if we need to resort to this action. Thank you for your generosity. sceptical of the usefulness of speed bumps, as some drivers have a tendency to test the undersides of their car by not slowing down thus creating a noise nuisance There is a green hill... for those living nearby! In answer to our request Current housing policy suggests the inevitable sorry for further measures we have had a fairly negative conclusion that every green space between the sea and response. Their reply includes the following: this would have on local wildlife habitats. Diamond states Despite this and in view of the concerns raised by some closely monitored by the Council and consideration and tracts of woodland for example) is proven to be that indicate driver speeds will follow where evidence of vital importance to their long term viability. Such suggests that road safety conditions are deteriorating. corridors or bridges between the South Downs proper It is clear that we do need more evidence to respond and our local nature reserve, Beacon Hill, will be on safety issues. There have been a number of near lost forever if we allow wholesale development of misses reported as cars race through the village and from vehicles coming off the coast road at high speed, The RSPB points to ignoring the 40mph speed limit on Greenways to Beacon Hill. Given the numbers of beach visitors crossing the road on this stretch, surely the limit should The loss of these species be reduced here too? What we can do is to gather better is almost always down to loss or change of habitat. The statistics of near misses and incidents.Villagers can Skylark, a familiar sight on Beacon Hill is designated help here by logging anything that they witness on the village web site at , over 50% in the last 20 years. Our local nature reserve, whilst all villagers can continue to lobby the highways supports a relatively healthy population of resident department for action. Skylarks 5-7 pairs bred successfully in 2014. Should the current equilibrium of downland plant species and off by building development, then it is likely that the Skylarks will decline on the hill. This is also true of the all intricately bound together in nature. Is the provision of more homes for, lets face it, people who want to move here (probably from outside the or despoiling the natural environment? I think not! Please say NO Jay Butler, ORPS www.ovingdean.co.uk