Call to stop new ‘urban jungle’ in Easebourne

Land at the King Edward VII hospital estate is earmarked in two separate planning applications, one for 93 dwellings on Kings Drive East, and one for 18 homes at Superintendants Drive.

Neighbouring residents have raised issues with insufficent water supplies, parking and the scale of the development as an ‘urban mass’.

Caroline Frazer wrote that the reservoir used to supply her home, surrounding streets and the new estate would be insufficient for domestic use – or in the case of a fire.

She said that there was ‘great concern’ that if a ‘serious’ forest fire or other blaze were to break out after a day’s use and before the daily reservoir top-up the reservoir would have insufficient water for the fire service.

She wrote: “This aspect of reservoir capacity needs to be urgently investigated by the fire authorities.

“Surely, for an estate of 1,150 people, the water should be supplied from the mains, rather than through a gravity fed private supply?”

Developer Probitas has said the new homes are needed as an ‘enabling development’ for long-promised works to the sanitorium chapel.

Resident Simon Pickard wrote that previous developer City and Country had not honoured its obligations and asked for ‘an investigation into where all the grants actually went’.

He added that 131 parking spaces for 111 homes was not enough.

“Allowing Probitas permission would be destroying the estate’s fantastic appearance and not in the interest of generations to come. It would just become another urban jungle.”