Thank you for engaging with Community Technical Aid and our organisation over the past two years regarding the public consultation on the above plan. Although the consultation was not perfect, our member organisations were delighted to be able to have an input into this critical plan and we would encourage your department to continue with these innovative practices. We especially thank your staff who were willing to come out to communities on many occasions and join us in public meetings etc.

East Down Rural Community Network is the umbrella organisation for nearly all the town and village and community associations across rural Down and Ards. We support our 77 member groups to develop projects, source funding and build the capacity of rural dwellers to improve the quality of life in their area.

General Comment

It has been difficult to ensure a reasoned and representative response to the draft plan given the extremely tight deadline of only 6 weeks over the Christmas period. We have also accepted that the planning process can be very divisive and by their nature, it is almost impossible for an umbrella body like ours to settle on consensus response across all issues and across all geographical areas. There will always be individuals in rural areas who are unhappy about restrictions on their planning applications. Likewise many of our village groups would want to see opportunities for development to sustain rural schools and services, while also maintaining a sense of identity and balance.

We have attempted to make a brief response under a number of headings and would like to have continued involvement in the public enquiry stage so that all villages and areas will have an opportunity to make their respective views known.

Social Housing

There is unanimous support for the concept of social housing and we agree that planning service should make provision where NIHE establish need. It is likely that organisations like our Network would assist NIHE to establish such need and communities require the robust support of planning service and housing associations to ensure this becomes reality.

Affordable Housing

Again there is overwhelming support for the provision of affordable housing. The increasing problems faced by young people and first time buyers is permanently dispersing traditional rural communities and the influx of second or retirement house owners within the travel to work area is exacerbating the problem of increased house prices.

We acknowledge that market forces are difficult to resist but it is not good enough to ignore the problem.

Planners should build in conditions during negotiations whereby the results of housing needs assessments determine the mix of tenure in new developments. Encouraging developers to engage with housing associations could assist.

Additionally it is felt that planners have a critical role to play in forcing developers to build houses with the future needs of families in mind. Rural people want family houses with space around them. This is particularly essential if we are to expect sons and daughters of rural dwellers to give up their desire to live on their own land and move to the settlements. Appropriate design and value for money is paramount in this regard. Apartments and town houses have limited shelf life and do not contribute a great deal to a sense of rural belonging.

Inappropriate developments, Apartments and Holiday Homes

There is a general welcome for planning service policies (Policy DE13 - Donaghadee) and (Policy NE12 - Newcastle) to control the design and layout of apartments in these locations. However, it is felt that early action could prevent the same crisis spilling into other costal villages.

Rural Housing

This issue causes considerable debate. It is felt that the specially designated areas which make up most of Down and Ards are worth protecting but that must be balanced by the need to maintain the unique character of a living, working countryside.

Planners should consider placing conditions on developers, which ensure building is restricted to rural families personal use, i.e. preventing early sale of sites. As the pressure increases over the coming years on the figure of 8000 new homes, should planners consider additional 'crossroads' settlements as areas for potential building in the future?

The Natural Environment

The need for enforcement and implementation of green / public space in housing developments should move beyond debate and reach a conclusion. Local communities feel increasingly hemmed in by new developments, which totally lack play space and facilities. Planning service must shoulder some of the responsibility for the social difficulties these new conditions present.

There are serious concerns regarding building on floodplains. Considering that the recent flooding problems in Newcastle were not attributable to the Burren River and appear to result from over development on the lower slopes of Mourne alongside tidal factors, there is a feeling that any floodplain development is a high risk and possible problem for the future. Other villages are also at similar risks.

Infrastructure

The need for a by-pass in Ballynahinch is growing ever more critical and should be given greater priority. Downpatrick suffers greatly from traffic congestion and the additional housing and brown-field development proposed, needs to be accompanied by the necessary road infrastructure if the town is to have any chance of achieving its full potential.

The recent moratorium on building because of roads and sewage problems highlights these concerns. Planning service is best placed to maintain the pressure on other responsible departments to ensure the required investment is secured. The community sector will back you fully on this front in order that the problems of untreated sewage in the Lecale area and other places is resolved.

There is support for placing surcharges on developers to fund some infrastructure rather than the full burden being borne by rate-payers. Planning service should make more use of Article 40 Planning Order 1998 in this regard.

We trust these points are relevant and we look forward to continued involvement in the area plan to bring it to a successful conclusion.

Yours sincerely

Nicholas Mc Crickard, Network Manager

James McAfee, Chairman