I have had this through from the Hitchin Forum and as it is so important to get people's opinions I have copied it here. I know that's not the way to blog but it seems mad me trying to put into different words the same thing!
You may be aware of recent press reports detailing what is perhaps the greatest development threat Hitchin has ever faced. This is a threat which will directly affect us all and we need your help.
Various developers have proposed to the Council that over 500 hectares of greenbelt land around the west, south and east sides of Hitchin should be developed for housing to fund a bypass running between the A505 Luton Road and the A602 Stevenage Road. We do not know how advanced these proposals are, but it seems likely that the various developers have already had discussions with North Herts District Council planners and Herts County Council transport planners. There are also separate proposals for housing on Pinehill Field and on fields near Highover Farm, between the Stotfold Road and the railway line.
North Herts District Council is obliged to give these various proposals due consideration and so has issued them for public comment. A large-scale map showing all the development proposals in and around Hitchin can be viewed at:
http://www.north-herts.gov.uk/hitchin_map-2.pdf
A summary of the proposals to the west side of Hitchin, Pinehill Field and Highover Farm can be viewed at:
http://www.north-herts.gov.uk/additional_suggested_sites_hitchin.pdf and those to the south and east at: http://www.north-herts.gov.uk/additional_suggested_sites_st_ippolyts.pdf
Clearly, this is a lot for local people to get to grips with and the deadline for public comments is 14 September. The West Hitchin Action Group (WHAG) is co-ordinating the campaign to oppose the proposals for the area to the west side of the town. Hitchin Forum is working with WHAG and we want to link in with residents in the rest of the town who are willing to leaflet their neighbours so as to raise awareness locally of the threat. WHAG have produced flyers, published 'model objections' on their website: http://www.westhitchinag.org.uk/ and are running stalls on Hitchin Market Place on 12th September where people can simply sign objection forms. So a lot of the work will be done for residents wanting to object to such large scale development on our doorstep.
What the Hitchin Forum would like now is for volunteers in each area to leaflet their roads/neighbourhoods to raise awareness. They have 1000 flyers to distribute and now need as many people as possible to deliver them! Would you be willing to do this in your area, and if so, could you let me know the roads you could cover and how many leaflets you would need? You can contact me at: snoopy02@btopenworld.com or by ringing 431338 before 9 September. After that date, you can contact Ann Heymans at: annheymans@btinternet.com on 433281.
We have spent a considerable amount of time and effort getting to grips with all the information ourselves, but at least we know the scale of the threat and where to find the relevant information, so do let me know if there's any more information you would like.
We hope you can help and I look forward to hearing from you shortly!
Ellie Clarke
Hitchin Forum Planning Group
