Hundreds of people attended a meeting on Saturday to protest at plans to build on Elms Field.
Held in the fields themselves, it gave Wokingham residents the opportunity to envisage parts of the borough council’s proposals to develop the area. Plans include a supermarket, cinema, shops and houses.
A new road will be installed replacing the existing Elms Road while the field will have new play equipment installed and landscaped to make it easier to host events such as Wokingham Festival.
Residential housing will also be built on the site.
To help people visualise what Elms Field will look like once the development is made, white lines were painted on the grass to show the location of a new road through the field, and balloons attached to string showed the height of houses along the edge of the popular park and of a five-storey hotel planned opposite the Carnival Pool.
The event was organised by residents opposed to the development, who encouraged people to make sure they commented on the planning application before the deadline of Friday, January 29.
The gathering heard the supermarket is likely to be run by Aldi – although the Council had yet to confirm this – with 90 car parking spaces and the hotel would be a Premier Inn.
It also heard there would be no affordable housing on the site.
During the afternoon there were speeches from Mel Horton, campaigner and administrator of the Keep Elms Field Green Facebook page, and councillor Prue Bray, the leader of Wokingham Liberal Democrats.
Ms Bray told the 150-strong crowd: “There is no affordable housing included.
“I believe it is 120 houses and not a single affordable home, it is shocking, particularly as the council demands it from other developers.
“If they cannot even stick to it themselves, how can you get it from other people? It is a disgrace.”
Ms Bray added that the Liberal Democrats have put in a Freedom of Information request to find out more about the finances of the scheme.
She said: “I believe that where the council is both the landowner, the developer and determines planning, they have to reveal certain financial information, which they have not done.”
Ms Horton asked if the council had really listened to previous objections and comments.
She said: “[There are] some concessions but still major concerns. On core strategies they haven’t even listened to themselves or their own recommendations.”
There are also fears over the height and position of the hotel and houses: five storeys for the hotel and four for the homes, making them 14½m tall.
Ms Horton added: “What we really want for Elms Field is an urban version of Dinton Pastures, somewhere that will draw families and visitors.”
For more on this meeting, make sure you buy your Wokingham Paper on Friday.
