Representation by Joanne Higgins
- Date submitted
- 6 November 2023
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
Draft Development Control Order (DCO) EN010117” and the supplementary Notice of Acceptance of a DCO Plot Number 32/13. I object to the above DCO. I live at [REDACTED] with my 18 month old daughter and my husband. I have the right to use Kings Lane, which is a private lane, to give me access to my house, which has stood since the mid 1600s. King’s Lane is the only vehicular access to my house, and the only access which allows my husband and I to be able to get out and work, to get my daughter to nursery and for any medical appointments we need to attend. I am making this objection specifically about the CPO, and independently of my views on the broader Rampion project. My objection is that the CPO over this strip of land is unnecessary. The overarching Rampion project will already dig up two specific parts of the lane to dig trenches and there is no CPO planned for those pieces of land and so if the Rampion project believes it can progress to dig huge trenches on the land without a CPO then it seems entirely without reason why they need one specific CPO for land at the very month of our lane and it is not clear, not has it been disclosed, what the purpose of that ownership would be for. Despite the fact that Rampion has in recent months been in contact with me as the homeowner several times by recorded delivery to explain the nature of the overarching Rampion project, they have made no reference to the need or requirements to purchase this piece of land. It was only discovered when a neighbour spotted a letter fixed to a gate post at the end of King’s Lane, which was there for a relatively short time and has now been removed. If it was critical to the success of the project then I would have expected it to be included in the various pieces of documentation and plans that Rampion have sent by recorded delivery over the last few months, as it has not been then I deduce that the purchase is unnecessary to the success of the project. The DCO is also incorrect in the categorisation of King’s Lane as a ‘bridleway and public footpath’, as stated above, and as the applicant is well aware as they have been to the area and been in contact with some of the residents it is a private road designed as the ONLY vehicular access to a number of homes on the road, so to categorise as a bridleway and public footpath is at best misleading, and at worst dishonest, and downplays the impact this strip has on my day to day life. The applicant has given no indication as to why they wish to purchase the land, and the whole process has brought an unnecessary amount of stress and confusion as to how I am going to be able to continue to access my house with my young daughter. It is not obvious how I will continue to be able to access my own home during the works, let along with the addition of the applicant having ownership of a specific strip of land at the end of the lane. In summary, my objections are: (1) Securing ownership to this piece of land is unnecessary for the success of the project as rights of access to be able to deliver the project can be delivered in other more appropriate ways, and i respectively suggest that the applicant looks into before progressing the CPO; (2) the process of consultation has been deeply flawed and has not engaged the residents of the lane to ensure each set of rights is being respected; (3) there is no overriding public interest in allowing this purchase to progress and risks challenge under Article 8 HRA 1998; (4) It is causing an immense amount of stress and worry to my young family as to how we will actually be able to access our own home, which is entirely avoidable had the applicant followed a consultation process, looked at more appropriate solutions, and engaged with the impact population, before going straight for a blunt measure of a CPO with no warning and no discussion. I request that my representative or I be granted the right to speak at any hearing during the Pre-examination stage of the process.