There are 2 central area that do not appear to have been considered.
The site on the main roundabout at the start of Station Road across to Homer Road, and backing onto Waitrose.
This site has planning permission for Offices but the site could provide for at least 150/200 apartments.

I am writing to you both as Chairman of the Sharmans Cross Action Group and as an individual ratepayer.

In the former role I act as a co-ordinator for some 2000 households in the residential area around the old Birmingham and Solihull Rugby Club ground on Sharmans Cross Road - site 18 in the draft Plan.

Our purpose is to bring the Rugby Ground back into use as a sports ground as required for its use in the Covenant with SMBC, and applying to the pitches. Also ensure that the covenant on the small freehold element of the site is upheld that this part of the site is only used for ancillary activities associated with a private sports ground eg car parking, changing rooms, etc.

In connnection with this site SMBC received near to 400 letters objecting to the site being used for residential property development. The virus has inhibited from having public meetings so I trust that SMBC will accept this letter as reflecting the views of at least 400 of the households we communicate with.

The points we wish to raise are:-

1. The SMBC assessment of the merits of different sites judged by accessibility appears to be significantly irrational, with potential for giving false impressions.
i. Distance to primary school.
The official analyses ignore the regular situation in which primary education is split into two sectors - pre-School/Infants and Junior. This is exemplified in the case of site 18. There is a junior school within 600 yards but the nearest infants school is over 1200m. Many mums have to be in two places at once.

Our point is that Primary education has been- in the case of site 18- redefined as Junior Schools only. This is false and misleading.

ii. Again, using site 18 as our test case, the distance to fresh food shops is not measured from the nearest new house or the middle of the estate but from a point nearly 200 yards from the nearest front door on the nearest existing road. Again this appears irrational because the distance involved for house owners is supposed to be10 minutes walk/ 880 yards. Just taking the nearest front door changes the assessment accessibility

These two issues would reduce the accessibility score from 400 to 300 and lower the site rating tons level where it would be unattractive by SMBC’s own criteria.

2. Density.

There is great play in the various Draft Local Plan about housing density. The SMBC officers appear to have created a new definition of”density.This had been done to disguise the actual density.

When you buy a house and the plot is one fifth of an acre and the other houses around are broadly the same, the density is 5 to the acre. No one would add into the site area part of the road or amenities in the area.

Again the Report is misleading!

3. Prime sites not put forward.

There are 2 central area that do not appear to have been considered.

i The site on the main roundabout at the start of Station Road across to Homer Road, and backing onto Waitrose.
This site has planning permission for Offices but the site could provide for at least 150/200 apartments”. The change to more working from home will only increase, making the provision of more offices highly questionable. The over all increase in Central residential accommodation is really good news, but it is our considered view that more officers is not what will regenerate the town centre, but more residential will. We understand this is an SMBC development so this site needs to be reconsidered.

Ii. Lug Trout Lane, Hampton Lane, Damson Parkway.

We are aware that There are hundreds of houses planned for this area, and that it designate green belt