Exmouth and Budleigh residents are urged to join campaigners in a five tonne digger stunt in protest of plans to grow East Devon by a third over the next 20 years.
Exmouth and Budleigh residents are urged to join campaigners in five tonne digger stunt in protest of plans to grow East Devon by a third over the next 20 years.
A five tonne digger is to be driven to the front door of the district council’s HQ, The Knowle in Sidmouth, in a bid to encourage residents to object to controversial plans to build over 16,000 homes in East Devon.
Campaigners are urging residents with a concern about proposals to join them at the event, on Tuesday November 23.
The three month public consultation on East Devon District Council’s Local Development Core Strategy, which sets out housing and other related proposals, will end on Monday 30 November.
If the plans are approved there could be 3,000 new homes in Exmouth.
Communities Before Developers, a campaign group set up to fight the plans, believe the plans would lead to urban sprawl, due to weakened landscape protection policies, aggressive proposals to build industrial estates and the introduction of flexible boundaries.
Roger Giles, District Councillor, said: “The new Government announced the abolition of centrally dictated housing numbers in the Regional Spatial Strategy.
“As a result many councils have reduced their housing numbers; East Devon District Council, however, has increased its housing numbers.
“The new Government has said that local people should be able to influence how they wish their communities to develop.
“East Devon District Council should listen to that message.”
Campaigner Jon Underwood, added: “The proposals are simply unsustainable. It is not possible to build in this way continuously for decade after decade.”
Claire Wright of CBD said: “With a massively increased population, overcrowded roads and views scarred by a proliferation of industrial estates and sprawling housing, we believe that tourism would decline dramatically over the years.
“East Devon District Council seems to be using Slough as its model for development. It needs to work with its natural assets instead.”
Campaigners will gather in the Knowle’s bottom car park at 10.15am.
See CBD’s website for updates at www.communitiesbeforedevelopers.org
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