BASINGSTOKE HERITAGE SOCIETY

Basingstoke Heritage Society
News for Members no 77
November 2008

Hannah Williams has been elected as the society’s chairman and has agreed to hold office until at least the AGM next year. We have a new treasurer, Cathy Williams and a new membership secretary, Ian Williams. We are very grateful to them all for volunteering for these offices without which the society would grind to a halt!

This stone was discovered by Kingfisher Housing Association during rebuilding work at the top of Sarum Hill. It was the foundation stone of John May’s Drill Hall, which he built and gave to the town in 1885. It was unearthed during works. Kingfisher has put it at the northern end of their car park – it is large and very heavy and it looks rather splendid, with just the initials ‘J’ and ‘M’ on it.

Local List

Another group of buildings have been added to the local list which is excellent. . Local Listing cannot save a building from demolition, but it can strengthen the hand of the development committee if they are minded to refuse an application.

The society had nominated:-
The handsome Victorian villas in Sarum Hill;
The Baring Centre, Sarum Hill;
The New Inn;
The Queens Arms;
The Hare and Hounds and
The Waterworks

and these have all been put on the list.

We also nominated a house in Eastrop Lane and The Castle in Reading Road, but these have not been included.

The council have themselves added –
The Cedars, Winchester Road;
Yew Tree House, Essex Road;
35-41 Essex Road;
Cliddesden Road nos. 97,99,101,103,69-71, 109,111, 123, 129, 73, 75, 77, 79, 81, 83, 85, 87, 89, 91;
The Stag and Hounds;
73 Worting Road and
9-16 Norn Hill

If there’s a building near you which you think should be on the list, please get in touch with the committee.

Local List

SHLAA RESPONSE TO CONSULTATION

This stands for Strategic Housing Land Availability Assessment, which the council have just put out for consultation. They asked a company to identify sites throughout the Borough, which have the potential for development. We have made the following response to the Couincil:

The Basingstoke Heritage Society takes as its area of concern the unparished areas of the town. This includes the 4 conservation areas, 2 of which (Fairfields and South View) we have been closely involved with during the designation process. We also take a view about estates which were laid out post-war (such as Queen Mary Avenue) or Kempshott or those laid out during town development. At the time estates were planned, they were designed with a mix of homes to ensure a good community, with green space, appropriate garden size etc. We have viewed with dismay the alterations to communities caused by planning consents for house conversions to flats, retrospective consents for HMOs and applications to build over green spaces.
We have made the following comments using the questions as a guide.

1 Do you consider that the methodology used for the draft SHLAA is suitable and in line with government guidance

No particular view on this

2 Do you have any comments on the approach to assessing the suitability availability and achievability of the sites listed

2.1 Suitability - there are areas where the study appears to have been carelessly undertaken; where pieces of land within a conservation area and noted as a special viewpoint have been designated for housing – e.g. BAS091 SOUTH VIEW
2.2 Availability – some of these sites such as BAS 030 and 031
are not available at present – they currently have homes on them and have been refused consent recently. 2.3 Achievability – some sites are so undesirable that we hope they are not achievable.

3 Do you have any comments on the assumptions made regarding potential yields on these sites

These are high targets, particularly for the old town centre area which has four conservation areas. Over-development in the central town area will not only alter these areas but will impact on the older areas of housing close to the town – the Fairfields and South View conservation areas in particular.

4 Do you have any comments to make on the deliverability/developability of individual sites

We have decided to comment on sites under the following headings
4.1 Green and Open Spaces
  4.1.1 BAS 095 – loss of land here and amenity space for the large amounts of housing at Park Prewett. If developed should perhaps be part of overall scheme for Manydown? With adequate infrastructure, community facilities etc.
  4.1.2 Car Parks Brinkletts – need for level parking to some extent E.g Brinkletts – currently retains shape and form of farm yard. Also close to handsome buildings of note in the conservation area
  4.1.3 BAS097 Upton Crescent – this type of building on garage space on estates which were well-designed as family housing post-war is bad for communities and should be resisted.
4.2 Heritage Sites
Change and development is inevitable, but sensitivity to heritage and history is of great importance not just for aesthetic reasons but for social cohesion, for a sense of belonging.
  4.2.2. BAS 006 Webbers Garage, New Road – proximity to All Saints’ Church – any proposal needs to respect this listed building.
  4.2.3 BAS 062 Timberlake Road and Cross Street – great care needed opposite row of historic buildings
  4.2.4 BAS 091 South View. Land opposite Great Western in Vyne Road is actually within the boundary of the conservation area. Recently the council’s conservation officers objected successfully to an application to put a telecom mast on this site in order to preserve the viewpoint of the Grade II* listed Holy Ghost Ruins. This site also contains Vyne Meadow car park. This also abuts the conservation area – building on this site must respect Phoenix Park Terrace which is 2 storey terraced cottages of about 1870.
4.3 Existing Areas of mature housing but not conservation areas
   4.3.1 BAS030 and 031. London Road east of Lauriston Court. Lauriston Court has not done anything to enhance this area which is at an important entrance to the town with arguably some of the town’s finest buildings (Goldings, No.2 London Road, Eastlands, Deane’s Almshouses). This site contains existing homes, where consent for development has been recently refused. They provide a link with the established areas of 1920s housing in Eastrop Lane which may in time acquire conservation area status.
  4.3.2 BAS 048 Chailey Court. Important site not enhanced by this office building. Conversion to 24 units of housing would be out of keeping with this area of family homes; would alter the nature of this community and would overcrowd the site which is significant as the entrance to the town from Winchester Road. This area retains much of its old character and is well worth sympathetic development. The site is within the central conservation area with several buildings regarded as ‘notable’ close by.
  4.3.3 BAS 074 Anstey Close – this is an area of family housing and could be used to provide more of this type of accommodation
  4.3.4 BAS079 Vyne School site – need to retain open space – schools may well expand, particularly if railway land/Kingsclere Road etc are developed. It is important that future needs of the school is taken into account at this stage.

5 Do you have an comments to make about the assessment of housing supply from unidentified small sites (1-4 units)

The society is opposed to the cramming of units into small sites.

6 Do you own or have an option on a site

   NO

7 Comments on the council’s general approach to housing including the suitability of locations for future housing

The society is not opposed to the growth of the town – its prosperity and growth is essential but we have considerable concern about cramming sites within the central town area particularly with same old small flats and tiny units which will not provide a housing mix and where built as studio units or without balconies do not provide decent housing. These types of housing also encourage buy to let investors, which means a transient population without a stake in the town.
Where there is no balance between those who are settled and those who are transient, communities will not thrive which will ultimately make the town a less pleasant place to live. This is something which affected Basingstoke drastically post-town development and the council must ensure that it does not happen again.

House to flat conversions …

We continue to object to these. The council’s policy is not sufficiently robust and the evidence offered at appeals has not been well-presented. We are also objecting to retrospective applications for conversion of houses to Houses in Multiple Occupation. We think these are bad for communities.

Cemetery sign …

The society put up a sign in the cemetery at South View in 2002 and it has deteriorated – possibly from over-zealous cleaning although on the whole sprayed graffiti and other vandalism has not affected it. We asked the original sculptor, Stephen Towns, to do a refurbish and have been successful in getting a POPPI grant (Pride of Place Partnership Initiative) from the council for the work, which will cost Ł1800. We are grateful to the conservation team at the council for awarding this grant to the society. The sign explains the history and setting of the ancient monument at South View and will be replaced within the next few months.

AGM 2009 – May 7th at The Willis

It’s not too early to ask you to put the date in your diaries for next year. We have an especially interesting speaker coming from the Hampshire Record Office with images from their archive, which will include a number of Terry Hunt photos of the town, taken in the early 1900s.

Conservation Volunteer Groups

there are now a lot of these around the town where you can work to improve the environment. For information contact Liane Green at the council on 01256 845630 or liane.green@basingstoke.gov.uk

Other Matters

=> McCarthy and Stone - this development is for 134 retirement flats on the Webbers Garage site in Southern Road. The committee had a lively debate about whether this was the right place for elderly housing, but came to no conclusion. We have objected to the 4 storey height of the development at the Southern Road edge and to the quality of the design.

=> Tree planting – national tree planting week event at Chineham Park - go along on Friday 28th November from 10.00 – 12.30 or on Saturday 29th from 12.30 – 5.00 to plant trees and eat cake!!!

All members are welcome to attend meetings of the society.

At most meetings we consider planning applications which fall within the area of concern to the society and agree comments.

Next meetings - December 4 and January 8 at Queen Mary’s College (go in at the main entrance and reception will guide you to the room) at 7.30.

For further information contact Debbie Reavell on 01256 473390
or by e-mail