Representation by Robert Finley
- Date submitted
- 30 October 2023
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
Rampions preference to use Oakendene as their site of choice appears to have come about as a result of not communicating their proposals to the residents in good time for us to contest their decision, they seemed to have quickly decided against their first two options then opted for Oakendene as their last remaining solution. When I raised this at one of the local meetings I was told by a Rampion representative that they could not consult with us at the time because of Covid restrictions on meetings, this says a lot. Many of the issues as to why Oakendene should NOT have been chosen seem to have been overlooked by Rampion, they do not appear to have fully researched the impact on the village as a whole, local residents, traffic flows, wildlife including insects, hedgerows, wildlife meadows, unsuitability of local single track lanes, air pollution and the threat of ground pollution. In the last week there was an incident on the A272 which had the effect of diverting all of the A272 traffic down Kent Street which is a single track lane with deep ditches at the side. The result was absolute chaos with HGV's, coaches and cars trying to pass each other causing some angry exchanges, and made the lane unusable for us residents and the numerous people who use the lane for recreation such as cyclists, horse riders. ramblers, dog walkers and joggers. The lane is now in a right mess with mud all over the road surface and the verges turned to mud and we have to live with this, the plans that Rampion have for Kent street will make sure that this chaos becomes a permanent state for the 5 years plus from when they start construction. When you look at what is proposed for Cowfold with a power station, a battery farm and a solar panel farm all within a small area of lovely countryside there has to be a question about is this the right location.