We welcome this response from Susie Colley, Independent.
Thank you for writing to me last week, seeking my support as a Mayoral Candidate , regarding your ongoing fight to retain Scotts Meadow in its natural state.
When I attended the Community Partnership meeting in January 2011, I saw for myself the strength of feeling that people from all over the Bay felt regarding the proposals by Cavanna to develop this site.
It concerns me that despite the decision upheld by a High Court Judge regarding protection of these meadows in September 2003, Cavanna Homes have challenged the judgement.
Having spent many years in Torbay, Scotts Meadow for me represents the natural beauty that attracts visitors to this part of the country. To contemplate destroying this “Gateway to the Bay” is to my mind an act of vandalism. I understand that you have communicated with those involved with the Torbay Green Infrastructure Strategy asking for the Meadows to be officially recognised as green space in the ward and that you will press for continued protection in the new Local Development Framework and any Neighbourhood Plan.
As the Elected Mayor of Torbay I will give unequivocal support to all your efforts to retain these meadows, leaving them untouched and unscathed for future generations.
At the Business Forum meeting on the 11th April, I spoke against any new houses being built in Torbay in the foreseeable future, until there has been an assessment of all the empty housing stock and all that currently approved by planning. If necessary I will challenge the “quota” that has been suggested by the Government, under the Localism Bill. Developers would be addressing environmental issues more empathetically if they modernised and revitalised these properties instead of building on and destroying yet more of our green space. I will also try to ensure that planning officers inform developers to build on any brownfield sites that they own before coming up with plans for greenfield sites. I fully recognise the need for housing those who are not fortunate enough to have their own property, but we must act responsibly and give careful thought to how we use the land as it is an inheritance for our children and many generations to come.
I should welcome the opportunity to visit the meadows at your convenience as it is many years since I have walked on that area. Perhaps you could contact me at your earliest convenience to facilitate this visit. Thank you on behalf of all of us who live and work in Torbay, for your continued efforts to retain Scotts Meadow in its natural and beautiful state.
Yours sincerely
Mrs S Colley, SRN
Managing Director
