Reading golf course housing development approved
Around 200 local people turned up to demonstrate outside the civic offices
A controversial plan to build more than 200 houses on the site of a former golf course in the north of Reading has been approved.
Several hundred local people turned up at the civic offices to protest over the development at Reading golf club in Emmer Green which attracted four and a half thousand objections.
They chanted 'Keep Emmer Green' and 'RBC stick to the plan' references to the campaigners desire to preserve the green space and keep to the council's own planning guidelines.
Once inside the meeting also heard concerns over bio-diversity and extra traffic from the development.
Protesters said the latest application wasn't much different from the one that was rejected last year.
It had attracted 4,500 objections which was described as the most objections ever received by Reading Borough Council.
Despite this Reading Borough Council deputy leader Tony Page said they'd managed to get a good compromise from the developers:
"There are something like thirty fewer houses than the previous application and the density of housing is quite low because it strikes a balance between the need for a mix of housing including affordable housing and the need for open space"
He dismissed accusations that the number of houses went against the council's own local plan saying that had only been relevant for part of the site.
He also pointed out that there'd be legal access to open space rather than the previous situation where the golf course was private.
Planners said the latest application also came with about fifty pre-conditions that developers had to meet and included local investment of more than a million pounds.
Mr Page had this message for the many disappointed and angry local residents:
"I'd invite them to look at the application in the round and not just look at the propaganda leaflets that a small minority have circulated look carefully at what has been approved and the raft of conditions that we are requiring the developer to comply with before construction can start"
As the application was passed several campaigners shouted 'shame on you'.
The meeting ended on a sour note when one councillor stood up and said he saw a member of the public gallery make a threatening cut throat signal towards councillors.