Green belt call to keep Newport and Cardiff apart (From South Wales Argus)
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Green belt call to keep Newport and Cardiff apart
12:33pm Wednesday 23rd January 2013 in News
A GREEN belt is needed in Cardiff to keep the capital separate from Newport to maintain their separate identities, according to Newport council.
Cardiff council is currently working on its local development plan that will set out how the city develops through until 2026.
A Newport council response to the plan calls for a green belt on land directly east of a proposed area for housing in Pontprennau, north-east Cardiff.
Cardiff planning cabinet member Ralph Cook said he is sympathetic to the council’s view and would want to see a green belt right around the capital.
According to a consultation response approved by Newport regeneration cabinet member John Richards, Newport does not objection to the allocation of land for 2,000 homes in Pontprennau.
But it says that land to the east of the site should be allocated as a green belt in order to “retain the important Cardiff-Newport gap and retain the strong identity of both cities in their own right”.
“There is no appetite for the cities to merge and development of this area of land would place that important strategic gap under threat,” the response says. The area is next to the proposed Newport green belt extension as shown in the deposit version of the Newport local development plan.
Councillor Cook, Cardiff council cabinet member for strategic planning, highways, traffic and transportation, said he saw the two cities as “two sisters that need to maintain their separate identities”.
He said that if the two cities coalesce the clarity between them disappears: “It makes it too difficult for the two communities to set their own agendas.”
Cllr Cook said a wider green belt that would stretch right around Cardiff was being considered.
The capital’s LDP is to be put to council members later this year.
Comments(8)
Severn40
says...
4:13pm Wed 23 Jan 13
Goldy_Lookin_Clart
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6:44pm Wed 23 Jan 13
Tidy idea
scraptheWAG
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8:05am Thu 24 Jan 13
Owain Vaughan
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9:37am Thu 24 Jan 13
scraptheWAG wrote:With friends like you, who needs enemies?
please merge and the name of newport can go for good
real comment
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1:46pm Thu 24 Jan 13
TO CONDENSE A POPULATION INTO AN EXISTING AREA MAKES MORE CONGESTION BEING COUNTER PRODUCTIVE
Howie'
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3:19pm Thu 24 Jan 13
Severn40 wrote:I don't think that's quite right. The recommendation to build these houses was in a report that Cardiff Council commissioned and accepted (Local Development Plan (LDP) preferred strategy).
What the story doesn't tell you is that teh Welsh Government has forced Cardiff to build another 45,000 houses principally on green fields. Cardiff originally said no and wanted to spread the development around South Wales but Carwyn said no. So in one swoop, you concentrate even more development in Cardiff. To think we voted these clowns in!
The LDP states that about 40,000 new jobs are planned by 2026 - a rise of 20%. The financial and business services are expecting a huge boost with 55% new jobs and there are at least 10,000 families on the housing waiting list.
By then it is expected the capital's population could be as high as 408,000, a rise of 26%, according to the report.
At a meeting to discuss the LDP opposition Councillors (Not the Welsh Government) were arguing that future housing needs should be shared with neighbouring authorities as part of a “city region”. This was rejected by the Council who decided strangely enough to build houses for Cardiff residents and Cardiff needs in umm, Cardiff.
Severn40
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4:59pm Thu 24 Jan 13
Howie' wrote:Howie. Cardiff's previous administration proposed submitted a LDP to the Welsh Government that sought to protect the capital's green fields and advocated a regional approach to housing and development. This was rejected.
Severn40 wrote: What the story doesn't tell you is that teh Welsh Government has forced Cardiff to build another 45,000 houses principally on green fields. Cardiff originally said no and wanted to spread the development around South Wales but Carwyn said no. So in one swoop, you concentrate even more development in Cardiff. To think we voted these clowns in!I don't think that's quite right. The recommendation to build these houses was in a report that Cardiff Council commissioned and accepted (Local Development Plan (LDP) preferred strategy). The LDP states that about 40,000 new jobs are planned by 2026 - a rise of 20%. The financial and business services are expecting a huge boost with 55% new jobs and there are at least 10,000 families on the housing waiting list. By then it is expected the capital's population could be as high as 408,000, a rise of 26%, according to the report. At a meeting to discuss the LDP opposition Councillors (Not the Welsh Government) were arguing that future housing needs should be shared with neighbouring authorities as part of a “city region”. This was rejected by the Council who decided strangely enough to build houses for Cardiff residents and Cardiff needs in umm, Cardiff.
Sorry to say this but the Welsh Government decided to play politics with the Capital's LDP.
Cardiff's new administration subsequently has put forward a proposal in line with the Welsh Government's thinking. The preferred strategy has been criticised amongst others by the Labour MP and AMs for Cardiff West. They too think the scale of the development is irresponsible and will fundamentally destroy the compact nature and character of the City.
Magor says...
2:30pm Wed 23 Jan 13