Representatives of Concerned Acocks Green Groups Stand outside 44 Flint Green Road
A joint local groups meeting of key representatives from concerned Acocks Green groups met on Wednesday 7 October to work out the details of their combined campaign to save these two fine Victorian houses in the heart of Acocks Green. A local developer has put in a proposal to demolish the houses. (See previous Flint Green Road posting for more details.) The campaign has already been active in Arden Road, but has now been more formally launched with six local groups agreeing to support. They are Arden Road Residents Association, Flint Green Road Residents Association, Acocks Green Focus Group, Acocks Green Neighbourhood Forum, Flint Green House and Birmingham City Mission. There is a proposal to demolish these two well built and charming Victorian properties in the middle of an area currently proposed as a Conservation Area and to replace by 11 modern 4 bedroomed houses. The meeting agreed unanimously that this would be bad for the area on two main counts: it would damage the appearance and character of the area. It would more dangerous traffic on the road, at a busy junction. Councillor Roger Harmer, from Acocks Green Ward, also attended the meeting and has agreed to be actively involved.
The meeting was heartened by recent comments on the properties from Birmingham City Council Conservation Department. They note that
‘This scheme is undoubtedly a retrograde step both in terms of the loss of these buildings and the design of the proposed [replacement] dwellings [...
[...] With regard to the design of the new dwellings [...] there is a distinct character (with very few exceptions to the existing properties in Flint Green Road and Arden Road. The proposed scheme would be extremely incongrous in terms of scale, massing, form and detailed design and would not contribute positively to the street scene. ‘
BCC Conservation are recommending that the application be refused. However, this is not the end of the story. The application still has to be formally considered by planning officers and, almost certainly (because it is controversial) by the Planning Committee. The planning process takes comments from members of the public into consideration. If you wish to support local residents and the Conservation Department, you may send your own comments to the planning officer concerned, justin.howell@birmingham.gov.uk (Remember Mr Howell is a council officer, he processes the proposals. He does not make them!) Alternatively you can write to Planning Managment, 11th Floor, Alpha Tower, Suffolk Street Queensway, Birmingham, B1 1TU. Don’t forget to quote the Planning Application Number, which is 2009/0432/PA
For more details, and our Flikr file of photos, scroll down to see our previous posting on 42-44.
Comments from nearby residents, would be particularly welcome.
However, Conservation do not make the decisions. They can (and are) recommending refusal, but the application still has to go through the formal processes of consideration by planning officers, and the Planning Committee. You can, however, support Acocks Green residents, and BCC Conservation, by writing to justin.howell@birmingham.gov.uk (The planning officer handling the application) or to Planning Management, 11th Floor, Alpha Tower, Suffolk Street, Queensway, Birmingham, B1 1TU. If you decide to write, don’t forget to quote the Planning Application Number which is 2009/04327/PA. We will continue to post on this story.
