Thanks to Charlie for the following.
“I’d firstly like to thank you for your excellent blog highlighting so many really wonderful things and organisations the town and it’s people have to offer. As a relatively new arrival to Abingdon it really has helped us settle in to the town and given us an insight into the community and the events on that are so very hard to find when you move to a new place.
I’m sure your not short of posts but we live near the Bellinger garage and have just become aware the planning application by Churchill retirement homes for 39 retirement apartments has been submitted. The application can be found at …
P17/V0321/FUL“
As it happens I was short of posts after 4 days away, and work is very busy at the moment. And so it was very helpful.
On a personal note I got rid of the Corsa when Bellingers moved, and bought a Panda from the local Fiat dealer instead.
I used to use that same Hartwell garage when they sold and serviced Rovers. The Rover logo has long since gone, as have the petrol pumps and convenience store.
It’s not until you look at the aerial view of Bellingers site that you realise just what a large site it actually is. with regard to Garages I notice that the Honda bike shop appears to have been emptied, presumably they are in the process of moving down Nuffield Way to be near the Harley Davidson shop.
The bellinger site looks to be 1&2 storey high at present. so I’m surprised by the 3 storey flats that will now overlook the school.
Rachel – I have just had a look at the application. If you look at the various diagrams, you will see that although the frontage of the building along Ock St is quite wide, the complex is L-shaped and the bit that looks North is narrow – looks like just 2 apartments wide – and will actually overlook the electricity sub-station rather than the school or Mullard Way.
To me the worrying thing about this application is that its only vehicle access appears to be via Bostock rd? If so that would’ve a disaster for the area ( which I believe some of it is in the conservation area?) the school would be particularly affected, surely it should be accessed via Ock St?
Capt K – I was also wondering how much traffic it would generate: I suspect that retrirement homes dont generate as much as say care homes since the residents will not need the same level of support and there will be far fewer staff. Since I think they are “independent living” flats, there won’t be large-scale deliveries either. The only parts of Bostock Road that are in the conservation area are the properties on the North side at each end.
PS Does anyone know how much traffic the Fleur de Lys apartments on Wootton Road have generated? That complex is about 2/3 the size of this one and when it was proposed we were worried about parking and traffic – I don’t know how it has worked out.
Hester, 18 months ago Churchill wrote to me and four neighbours offering to buy my new house (and there’s at a pretty much name your price deal) they wanted to knock the houses down and build that home here ! Fortunately we all refused, but I did have several exchanges with them, their criteria is 1/2 a mile from a town centre, I suggested the closed upper reaches? They said the vale had told them there was already something in the pipeline for it ?? They were also trying to buy the centre on Stratton way off OCC but was not getting anywhere, they also looked at the old cross key site, but it wasn’t big enough, so I suppose this is a good site for them?
While on the subject of planning have you seen the sneaky ore cursor application for 200 houses just off wootton rd round about? The parcel of grass that the public uses where they put tgebew pedestrians crossing in? It’s not under Abingdon or Wootton, have a look at the parish of Saint Helen Without !
Capt K – the development you refer to has been on the cards for a long time – it is one of those included as part of the Local Plan – along with the 900 further round Dunmore Rd and the 2 sites in Radley and Kennington. As you know that plan was approved last year so this application was not unexpected…