A CAMPAIGN group’s hopes of having a 4,500-home development reconsidered were dashed after Wokingham Borough Council decided not to raise their petition in full council.
Save Our Loddon Valley (SOLVE) members collected more than 1,800 signatures to have Arborfield’s Hall Farm development discussed by councillors.
The group was told that the council will not be debating the issue as it would “go against its constitution”.
According to the council’s e-petition guidelines, reaching 1,500 signatories should trigger a debate at the next available council meeting.
SOLVE member Christine Holdender said: “We’re really disappointed to have traipsed around the neighbourhood collecting signatures for nothing.
“The impact the development will have on schools, traffic concerns and congestion will be pretty awful for most people – most signed up.
“We’re still going to keep on fighting. There is some debate within the central government that there is less pressure to build, which could mean that the council doesn’t have to build the 4,500 homes they had initially suggested.”
The majority of the Hall Farm site is owned by the University of Reading and is shared with the Centre for Dairy Research (CEDAR), which conducts research in combating hunger, poverty and climate change.
The Arborfield local plan development will see the university sell 580 hectares of agricultural land.
SOLVE had penned an open letter to the university voicing their concerns and conducted two protests at its Whiteknights campus at the end of last year.
The group had been optimistic that their concerns would be debated in full council after handing over their petition to the leader of the council, Cllr Clive Jones, on December 21.
A Wokingham Borough Council spokesperson explained the petition had been accepted but, having sought legal advice, it was deemed that a full council debate would go against its constitution.
The spokesperson said: “Our councillors are required to take part in certain discussions, including live planning issues, without bias or any suggestion that they’ve already made up their minds before considering the facts.
“We’re currently updating our local plan, which will shape all kinds of development in the borough for years to come, and the possibility of development at Hall Farm could form part of these discussions.
“To ensure we’re operating democratically, councillors have a duty to remain open-minded throughout the process and make decisions based on the evidence in front of them.
“We recognise that residents put significant effort into organising the petition and know this will come as disappointing news, and we apologise that this issue wasn’t made clear to them sooner. However, our members have seen the petition so they’re aware of the local strength of feeling.”
