Wood Green to be 'ruined'? (From Witney Gazette)

Wood Green to be 'ruined'?

9:00am Wednesday 24th January 2007 in Witney By Rosalind Miles

A LAST gasp attempt has been made to block a development neighbours fear could ruin a beautiful historic green.

About 40 people gathered at a planning meeting to discuss the future of Chichester House, in Wood Green, Woodstock Road, Witney.

Campaigners wanted to object to a proposal to demolish the building and replace it with 13 flats.

West Oxfordshire District Council has already turned down planning permission for the flats twice - in March and May last year.

But developers, Empire Homes, appealed, and a planning inspector held an informal hearing last week, when townsfolk turned out in force to make their views known.

Wood Green was the inspiration for Thrush Green, the fictional creation of author Miss Read, who lived in Wood Green during the 1940s.

She wrote a series of novels, including At Home in Thrush Green and Affairs at Thrush Green.

Town councillor Roger Curry said: "That site is very sensitive. Everyone going in and out of Witney will see it. Anything we put up there will be there 50 years.

"It's important anything that goes up preserves and improves the conservation area of Wood Green. Wood Green is very much part of our 18th-century heritage.

"Thirteen apartments is simply overdevelopment. It's too many buildings on the site. My concern is it should be very-high-quality buildings, and really not too many, because the character of the area is large houses with big gardens.

"If you read Miss Read's books, you can recognise Wood Green, and it hasn't changed since then. People are concerned to maintain this continuity of history.

"There is an extremely strong feeling about this, not just around the green, but throughout the town." Roland Wilcock, of Woodlands Road, said: "The thinking should be that this is not just any old piece of land in Witney - this is Wood Green, part of the conservation area, and it has got a historic and aesthetic character that must be taken into consideration.

"It's an important area from the point of view of the real character of Witney. What concerns a lot of us is that the proposal is for 13 dwellings, which will have 13 separate residents and all the detritus that will accompany them.

"Over the years, there is no doubt the character of the area will be destroyed."

The planning inspector is expected to make a decision within six weeks.

Initially, 14 homes were proposed for the site, and after being rejected once, it was reduced to 13 flats.

West Oxfordshire District Council planners have recommended the plans for the flats to be approved in the past two planning applications, although councillors have voted against the proposals .