Fact: Canterbury college principal Susan Pember has “chosen” a South Canterbury farmland site for her nev.
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DO YOU CARE ENOUGH TO KEEP SOUTH CANTERBURY GREEN?
60 acre, 7000 student, £30 million new college.
Question: Is this your choice too?
Answer: If “NO”, then this is what you need to do.
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At the very least, object formally to the planning application by writing to the Director of Planning
before 26th February
Send copies of your letter to your elected council leaders urging their support (NB, the Director of
Planning is a local government professional, not an elected representative, so you must encourage
councillors to oppose him directly in committee and in debate)
Send copies of your letter to your MP, Julian Brazier
Make your views l-cnovm directly to Susan Pernber
Write to your local paper
Attend key public meetings (PTO)
Ask to see the planning application (CA/98/0080/CAN) in the council offices in Military Road.
Addresses to write to
Mr Mansell Jagger (Director of Planning) Canterbury City Council
Cllr Iain Douglas (Lab leader) all at Military Road
Cllr Marion Attwood (Con leader) Canterbury
Cllr Martin Vye (LibDem leader) ii lCTl lYlV
Mr Julian Brazier MP Kentish Gazette
House ofCommons 9 St George’s Place
London SWIA OAA Canterbury CTl IUU
or
Constituency Ofiice
Susan Pember
Principal
Canterbury College
New Dover Road
Canterbury
9, Hawks Lane
Canterbury CTI 2NU
Points you need to make in your letters:
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Object to the lack of detailed publicity available to you. Pember will conduct door-to-door
canvassing week beginning 2nd Feb in the locality of the present college - NOT in your locality. Tell the
council that you demand to have your opinion canvassed too. This canvassing MUST include your
street too. Also, at end January, the college will invite residents associations to view their proposal in
college room X203 ~but they have NOT invited residents from your area. Object to their selective
dissemination of information. Tell the council that the college is not hearing your view.
Demand that the college justify the need to expand, and the need to relocate from their present
site. The local plan inspector required the college only to demonstrate that it had chosen an acceptable
site. There is no formal burden of proof upon them to justify expansion or relocation. This is
outrageous You must demand to hear the college justify their actions to you.
Object to the loss of 60 acres of largely grade 1 agricultural land without adequate public
warning or consultation. Wot 30 acres as reported in the Gazette: see planning application for
details). The council has skilfully stage-managed events here. (1) The college has had an “ongoing
liaison with the council since l995” in this matter. Something the council has denied in repeated
correspondence with local residents. (2) At the local plan enquiry, 1996, a recorded statement shows
that “alter several months of meetings and persuasion from (unelected) Ofiicers of the council, the
college was urged to select a site which the officers could support" (3) In 1997 another “ofiicer”
(assistant director of planning) commissioned a landscape appraisal which was staggering in its bias,
finding that our agricultural green belt land was the least sensitive to development. Yet the landscape
appraisal did not include brown belt land like the Wincheap industrial estate, and low grade agricultural
land l-2km north of the city. (4) Clearly these “0t’ficers” of the council have wittingly or unwittingly
influenced the selection of the present site.