Reasons
To Object
A huge area of Bushey's greenbelt land will be destroyed under devastating plans by Hertsmere Council to build 2,900 new homes in Bushey by 2037. This comes after council leaders accepted the governments housing targets for Hertsmere as part of the boroughs new Local Plan.
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These fields are not just part of the beautiful landscape of Bushey. There are a numerous reasons to protect this land which forms one the largest proposed sites.
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Wildlife - There is an abundance of wildlife consisting of many birds of prey including Barn Owls, Tawny Owls, Buzzards, Kestrels, Sparrow Hawks and Red Kites which nest in the trees. Other birds including Spotted Woodpeckers and Green Necked Woodpeckers have also been seen. Many foxes reside in the fields and on summer evenings at dusk you can see a large number of bats.
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Location - The area makes an important contribution in the gap between Bushey, North Bushey and Watford. It has a strong unspoilt rural character and any development would significantly reduce the scale of the gap between these areas.
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Traffic - Locally there has been a noticeable increase in traffic levels in recent years. Little Bushey Lane is especially busy and at certain times the traffic can back up from the Aldenham Road traffic lights to the junction of Geddes Road taking 20 to 30 minutes to reach the junction. Sandy Lane is narrow and often gets blocked with traffic.
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Infrastructure - Additional homes will put great strain on the already insufficient infrastructure in Bushey. The two nearest secondary schools are oversubscribed every year as they also serve neighbouring towns. There is no public transport on Little Bushey Lane and the nearest bus routes are the 602 on Aldenham Road or the 306 on Farm Way. The nearest train station is 1.6 miles away taking over 30 minutes to walk. Any development would encourage additional cars and heavy traffic on to already heavily congested roads, which will also lead to increased emissions.
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Flooding - In heavy or continuous rain, the water pours off the fields on to Little Bushey Lane often causing pools of water to form. The existing sewers are unable to take the volume of water. Documentation shows that Farm Way and Bournehall Avenue are at risk of flooding and Homefield, Springcroft and Finch Lane have flooded in previous years. As these roads are below the level of the fields any development would severely increase the risk of flooding to existing homes.
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Mental Health/Well-being - These fields are enjoyed by a huge number of local residents. They are a well known place to exercise, walk dogs, enjoy wildlife and people can be seen sunbathing and having picnics on summer days. During the lock downs in 2020, people travelled from further afield in Hertsmere and now it's used more than previous years.
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These are just a few reasons to resist this development and without your comments and objections to Hertsmere Council we will lose this land forever.
