brentwood.gov.uk

I visited your exhibition at Seymour Field, Ingatestone on the 9 August and took copies of documents and had a useful discussion regarding a number of points relating to Ingatestone & Fryerning. I have subsequently downloaded the documents and had another study of the plans and text. On the whole I support the plan, and believe it is good to raise these issues at a borough and parish level at regular intervals. I am particularily interested in encouraging more sustainable transport in the area and would comment on the two preferred options for development that relate to Ingatestone:

Ingatestone Garden Centre - 130 dwellings
Although this site is in Mountnessing PC area it does of course have an impact on Ingatestone centre and its facilities. On the grounds that there are constant calls for additional car parking in Ingatestone to support local shops and businesses I would expect that a further 130 dwellings would have some useful financial impact on Ingatestone, bearing in mind the need to ensure that access to doctors' etc. are looked at. Bearing in mind the location some thought should be given to improving walking and cycling access to Ingatestone Station and village centre and also to Mountnessing and beyond to the proposed Crossrail site in Alexander Lane, Shenfield, via the A12 and B1002. 130 properties would also of course have a positive financial impact on Mountnessing PC although it would be sad to lose the garden centre.

Land at Bellmead, Ingatestone - 16 dwellings
This is interestingly only the BBC land at the bottom of Bellmead and not the whole site, including the land beyond The Crown Inn, which was the subject of a past application. On this basis I envisage a development along the lines of nearby Elston Close, off High Street, which has resident's parking, both for cars and cycles. I would like to see a footway and/or cycleway link through Bellmead, from High Street, to Fairfield and the railway station and beyond. The pathway to the station is at present under improvement, as was suggested at a previous Local Plan meeting I attended a few years back. Moving the slightly hazardous current pedestrian crossing in Market Place to The Bell would mean that AES pupils could be directed in a much safer route to the station, plus the benefits to local public transport routes this would have for the residents, businesses and visitors to the village. Some thought should be given to adequate direction signs to aid visitors from the station, which was suggested by a Year 7 group of pupils from the AES Ingatestone a few years ago. I therefore cannot see any call for additional off-street parking at this site being justified as it is small and there are more pertinent improvements required to walking and cycling access. New cycle parking just off the High Street has just been installed by the Community Association (the first in the village centre itself!) and the Parish Council have been asked to look at additional sites at the Library, Bellmead and Market Place. The Crown Inn has recently been sold and I am not sure what the position is regarding the land beyond it which goes down to the water course or that at the back of the old workhouse cottages in the High Street but access to any other development would be severely restricted should this smaller site be built as proposed.

There have recently been problems with flooding adjacent to Norton Road and Elston Close from the water course from Fryerning Lane, which goes along the boundary of the site going under the High Street by Bellmead and emerging to the East of this site. Care must be taken to ensure any flood risk here is dealt with. I have spoken to the EA regarding the problems and restricted access to the water course by the Elston Close development and they are to look at the site.