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Latest News 15 October 2008: Eastern Daily Press Details emerge of new eco-town by Ed Foss
To date, detail has been sketchy - but that all changed yesterday when the developers behind a proposed 3,400-home green community on the edge of Norwich finally revealed their vision. The bold “masterplan” follows speculation since July about what might be built at Rackheath under the banner of the government's much vaunted eco-town proposals. The suggested 725-acre Rackheath Eco-Community has already garnered far more favour in council circles than a separate eco-town plan at the former RAF Coltishall, which has received far more attention. The final design at Rackheath would, developers have assured, depend on what people say locally in consultations. Speaking to the EDP yesterday, the man who is co-ordinating the project explained what he hoped to see. Paul Knowles, chairman of Building Partnerships, a regional property development company heading the scheme alongside Barratt Homes and carbon reduction experts from the University of East Anglia, said the Rackheath site was a perfect location for a host of reasons. These included:
“As well as its proximity to Norwich, it is an ideal place to tackle a development like this because of the skills available locally, such as at the UEA's school of environmental sciences - and they are an integral partner in this,” said Mr Knowles. A key advantage of Rackheath was that it was not in the same mould as many of the other eco-town projects because it was not using a greenfield site, said Mr Knowles. Also, it would count towards wider housebuilding targets set for greater Norwich. The aim was for it to be self-contained in terms of energy, waste and water, with the potential to export energy. And Mr Knowles said the existing community of 860 homes at Rackheath would not be separate to the new houses but part of a single community. While the new properties would have to meet a minimum of code 4 on the Code for Sustainable Homes, the target would be to hit the top level of code 6 if possible. Help would also be offered to people living in the existing homes to improve their code levels. Eco-friendly technology could include wind turbines, groundsource heat pumps and a combined heat and power biomass plant. Places of employment would sit alongside the present Rackheath industrial estate, the presence of which was particularly helpful as providing new jobs from scratch would have taken several years. While conceding the scheme might cause concern among some locals, Mr Knowles said: “We believe there will be quite a high proportion of people who have positive things to say about this.” Some 14,000 letters will hit doormats in Rackheath and surr-ounding communities in the next few days asking people for their views. To comment or find out more visit www.rackheatheco-community.com CONSULTATION PROCESS The first consultation exhibition will be held at Rackheath Primary School on Friday, October 31 from 3pm to 8pm. This will continue the next day from 9am to 4pm. The purpose of the exhibition is to show what is being proposed and give people the opportunity to leave feedback. Developers have promised to ensure the “widest possible engagement with the community” and pledged to provide “open and honest feedback”. A consultation event will also be held in the centre of Norwich. The feedback received will be collated and used to produce a report for the developers. Copies of the report will also be available to local residents. The report is likely to be an integral part of any future planning application. In December, a follow-up exhibition will be held to show how the plans have progressed and how the developers have responded to comments from the first exhibition. |
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