Villagers step up fight against new homes

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ANGRY residents are expected to pack out a school in Powick next week to voice their fears over proposals to build a controversial new housing development in their village.

A public meeting will be held on Wednesday (January 13) at Powick CE Primary School at 6.30pm to give villagers the chance to raise their concerns over an application to create 45 homes, off Russell Close.

The proposals, which have been tabled by developer Bovis Homes, have already brought strong opposition from residents.

Malvern Hills District councillor Tom Wells, who has organised the meeting, told the Standard their concerns centred around congestion, the impact on the landscape and access.

"This is a very contentious application," he said.

"It includes the outrageous proposal to demolish a recently constructed detached home to gain access to the site, which is landlocked. The people who moved to Russell Close thought they were going to live in a little cul-de-sac, but they could suddenly find themselves in a main thoroughfare so you can understand their opposition."

Coun Wells also believes the area is not sustainable for a new development as it has already seen an increase of 200 homes in the past 20 years.

"It is time to say 'enough is enough'," he added.

"The school is oversubscribed, we lost the butchers and the post office so Powick is not a sustainable settlement for a development of this scale."

A spokesman from Bovis Homes said a number of measures had been taken to minimise the impact of the new homes, including a ‘view corridor’ which allows for framed views of the Malvern Hills.

The developer also insisted the extra traffic would not make a significant difference to the Hospital Lane junction.

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