A councillor has denied claims that a consultation over potential sites for housing developments in Lichfield and Burntwood is confusing residents.
Lichfield District Residents’ Alliance have admitted their concern over the Council’s Call for Sites programme beginning while residents are still awaiting the outcome of the Secretary of State’s decision on the West Midlands Regional Spatial Strategy.
The Alliance’s chairman David Woods had called the Council’s timing “crass”.
He added:
“If Lichfield District Council wish to cause confusion amongst residents they couldn’t go about it in a better way!”
But Cllr Neil Roberts, Cabinet Member for Development, said that the Call for Sites consultation was necessary.
He explained:
“We are also keenly awaiting the outcome of a government report into housing numbers, which is due out in the next few weeks. In advance of this report, it’s crucial we continue work on the district’s Local Development Framework, which will ultimately help to protect local areas from inappropriate development.
“Recently this has included researching any sites that could possibly be used for future development, from green spaces and community uses to industrial and commercial purposes. As part of this we are asking people to let us know if they own any suitable land. People’s feedback will be fed into a public consultation document to be published later in the year.
“A frequently asked questions leaflet has been produced, which explains the process in detail, and contrary to the Lichfield District Resident’s Alliance’s suggestions, we haven’t received any calls from concerned residents.”
