Solihull Planning department- Allocation 13 proposals

Dear Sirs,

I have lived here for the last 35 years and I am writing to express my concerns over the proposal to flood the green-belt area of Shirley South with housing developments.

The following are a number of points that I would like to be considered before this proposal is considered in more detail:

* It is unfair for Solihull to be expected to shoulder the burden of the inability of Birmingham to provide new housing.
For instance one only has to look around the view from the train into the city to see that there are many brownfield sites that could be utilised for them to fulfil their quota.
Just two examples are land at Tyseley has been empty for the last 10 years at least and at Digbeth there are large ground-level car parks while the multi-stories lie unutilised.

Birmingham needs to be made to fulfil their quotas.

* If there are to be new housing developments then they need to be localised so that there is good and available access to communication routes.
Therefore it would seem logical to consider areas with good access to the motorway network and the proposed HS2 route.

The proposed developments do not do this.

* South Shirley does not have good infrastructure in either roads or social and health provision to support more housing.
You will be aware that the local Health trust have removed the A&E facility at Solihull Hospital and that major injuries now need to be routed elsewhere.
It would be logical to site new developments within a reasonably accessible time-frame from major health-care centres.
At peak times the roads around here are so busy that one often has to rely on the goodwill of drivers to cross roads such as Bill's Lane or Hasluck's Green Road to be able to safely cross them.

It is ridiculous to even contemplate that the area could even begin to cope with the numbers of proposed houses.


With Particular reference to Allocation 13:

* This is a hugely-valuable area of greenbelt land which currently separates the sprawl of Shirley with that of Dickens Heath.

* It is used and enjoyed by many for recreational walking/ jogging /cycling and dog-walking.
As a walker of dogs myself I have been aware over the years just how many people use this beautiful country area.
Indeed there are some people who come from afar to walk their dogs here and the numbers have certainly increased since the large area of Shirley Parkland was sold off for development.

* The area is rich in wildlife and it is a pleasure enjoyed by very many residents to get out into the country to hear birdsong and breathe the fresh air.
Furthermore it is a huge advantage to us all that we do not have to get into our cars to do this-it is just a short walk away for so many of us.


I believe that it would be criminal of Solihull Council (who are supposed to look after their residents to take this away from us and destroy this oasis of nature.

Yours sincerely