W A Sanders, of Broadway Avenue, Kingsteignton, writes:So an owner of land on Penns Mount hopes to get planning permission for 50 houses.Personally, I doubt that he will be lucky but I know the area well and I cannot see how, other than extra traffic, this development will affect many in the area.A small part of the norhterly plot is visible from Vicarage Hill but the remainder of the land is well screened from Vicarage Hill and Greenhill Way by established trees and dwellings built along the old Hackney Lane.Perhaps I am being cynical but could having two councillors in the immediate vicinity be part of the reason why opposition is stirring?One resident comments that 'the site is outside the development boundary, it is a greenfield site'. So was Newcross, and look at it now. Hundreds of mature oak trees removed and a beautiful nine-acre lake filled in, completely devastated by the owners and, unless Teignbridge sees sense, destined for 600 homes.Our local councillors (in 2003/4) would have been aware that Devon County Council considered Newcross to be greenfield and wished it to be eventually restored to a village amenity. Yet when it was completely wiped out by Sibelco I cannot recall any of them voicing their concerns. In fact, one was very much for building there.I have heard that people in the area are being told that Penns Mount is an area of great landscape value. I am sorry to say it isn't. It is only an area of local amenity importance – in other words a pleasing feature.The Urban Fringe Study carried out by Teignbridge, I believe in 2001/2, states: 'The knoll (Penns Mount) plays a critical role in the setting of Kingsteignton, providing an important green foreground in views of of he settlement from the south and east.'However, the plots in question are tucked under Penns Mount on the west side of the hill invisible from the River Teign, Dartmoor and the A380 and screened from most of Vicarage Hill by trees and existing housing.So I cannot really see what the fuss is about.l I note that Kingsteignton resident Geoff Pike asked: 'What happened to the plans for a sports centre at Abbrook?' Answer – Sibelco and AWE happened.DCC has recently asked Sibelco for an Environmental Impact Assessment on the land that will be lost to the realignment of the B3193 Chudleigh Road. In doing so it brings the moving of this road a major step forward. I understand the present planning permission expires in 2011, so in the forseeable future the football fields at Abbrook could well disappear under this new road. Abbrook farmhouse and its outbuildings are destined to become an Urban Village Hub. These hubs are designed to be meeting places, with small shops, cafes etc where in summer one can sit outside, drink one's coffee and admire the sculptures or murals that are in the locality. As these hubs are usually in the form of small squares the layout of Abbrook will be perfect. No one knows at this stage what will happen to the sporting clubs that are the backbone of Abbrook at present. It would be nice to think Sibelco supplied them with ideal accommodation elsewhere, but only time will tell.
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