Say No to full scale Kent Science Park expansion plans

Last chance to influence your future starts on the 26th March

Swale Borough Council will begin, on 26^th March 2012, the second round of consultations on the future plans for the borough to up 2031 which is called the Core Strategy. This follows on from the results of last year’s consultation which apparently guided the Council into firming up a final preferred option for us to consider.

The consultation is expected to last eight weeks until 18^th May 2012. They are sticking with the ridiculous naming and following last year’s “Pick Your Own” are calling this consultation “Bearing Fruits”

Results of March 2011 Consultation on expansion of the Kent Science Park

LaSalle’s dirty tricks backfire

Jones Lang LaSalle has refused to acknowledge that statements accusing FPOG of campaigning to the close the park are untruthful. The comments which coincidently appeared during last year’s public consultation on the parks future did not influence public opinion with 93% opposing the large scale expansion of the park. Although the expansion is not a likely prospect in the next 20 years, the Borough Council remains undeterred by the weight of public opinion against the expansion and is seeking to include the possibility as a future ambition.

Some of the villages who turned out for the protest march against the Kent Science Park proposals

01.04.12

The case for major expansion of the Kent Science Park has certainly not been proven.

First we had planning applications for new buildings, then before these were let and some still haven’t even been built, there was a urgent requirement for expansion beyond the security fence to retain Ecologia and service interest from potential new tenants.
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26.03.12

Rural roads to suffer if Southern Relief Road is built

New evidence only made available today as part of the consultation exercise expels many of the myths surrounding the Southern Relief Road including the so-called benefits to the rural road network.
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04.03.12

Success claims highly questionable

Recent press releases from the Kent Science Park would have you believe that the park has been successful despite the downturn in the economy, with a number of new tenants taking residence. However only a year ago the park had reported a massive drop in the number of tenants based at the park down from 84 to just 60 companies.
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18.12.11

Failure to attract new tenants put down to access issues.

Swale Borough Council has reported that it is their understanding that the Kent Science Park’s failure to enact on previously agreed planning applications is due to the lack of access.
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18.12.11

Expansion of the Kent Science Park highly unlikely in the next 20 years according to Swale Borough Council

The Council have stated that inclusion of the Kent Science Park within the Core Strategy is a significant risk which could undermine the Core Strategy itself, as deliverability and therefore soundness of the plan as a whole would be compromised.

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17.12.11

Costing in excess of £100 million to create just 1,250 local jobs by 2056 is the Sittingbourne Southern Relief Road worth it?

With traffic relief to the town centre its major selling point, and most of the surrounding network predicted to get far worse can this road even be justified on transport grounds?

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16.12.11

Bad news for Swale as the Borough Council predicts that only a third of jobs will go to locals

As the Borough Council weighs up the evidence for expanding the Kent Science Park, it is revealed that in line with the traffic modelling projections, the prediction is that a vast majority of the planned jobs would go to people from outside Swale.
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The key proposals and why we object

The housing

Although not included in the next 20 years, then again neither is the expansion, 5,000 houses have been repeatedly proposed in the past to assist in funding the road.

It is however no secret that the Southern Relief Road requires more development to help justify its existence and whilst the Kent Science Park are keen to distance themselves from the housing debate, they don't object to someone else making this proposal.

The housing debate in connection with the Kent Science Park has never been one about meeting local demands and has always been in additional to the housing quota's proposed by the Borough Council.

The expansion

The Kent Science Park wishes to expand its site to three times its present size with the view of creating somewhere between 2,500 and 3,500 new jobs, although this is a moving target and way down on their original estimate of 5,000.

We say lets build on the back of proven success and make the most of the present site and unbuilt planning permissions before considering a major expansion.

At present the owners have failed to deliver on all previous growth targets, currently averaging just 25 jobs per annum over the last eight years.

The road

No longer a key part of Swale Borough Councils Core Strategy as funding is highly unlikley in the next 20 years. The evidence presenting the proven case for the road would appear to fall short on a number of significant points and appears to suggest seriously high levels of traffic on the rural road network.

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Opposing the proposals by the Kent Science Park which would destroy our way of life forever.