Hamble Airfield Application Registered
Cemex has now registered an application with Hampshire County Council (HCC) for Gravel and Sand Quarrying at the Hamble Airfield site. You are likely to see notifications around the village and in local press over the coming days.
Where can I find the application documents?
The Public Notice, Application Form, and all accompanying documents and plans can be found on HCC’s website here: https://planning.hants.gov.uk/Planning/Display/HCC/2021/0787#undefined
Included within these documents is a Statement of Community Involvement which includes details of the resident feedback received during the November 2021 consultation. You can view this feedback here: https://bit.ly/3FJtR7A
Hamble Parish Council has also established a microsite dedicated to the Cemex application which includes all pertinent information and documents (including those produced by the Council), and can be found here: https://cemex.hambleparishcouncil.gov.uk/. However, it is important that you also check the HCC planning portal as this is where public and statutory consultees’ comments will be found, a number of which will be crucial to the application’s success or failure.
How will you keep us updated?
We will ensure that regular updates are posted to our website (https://hambleparishcouncil.gov.uk/), Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/HamblePC), and to noticeboards around the village, as well as including details in future editions of the newsletter.
Can I view the planning documents offline?
We appreciate that not all residents will have access to the internet or social media, and that many residents prefer to read detailed planning documents offline in paper format.
To ensure that all Hamble residents have easy access to the planning application and related documents, we will take the following steps:
- We will make the best use possible of the noticeboards around the village. These are located:
· on the side of the Beach Hut Café at the Foreshore
· in the Square
· on the side of the Parish Office
· on the grassed area at the entrance to Coach Road.
- Given the size of the application and the potential consequences for Hamble, we will be organising an unmanned exhibition of the key planning application documents, images and materials at the Memorial Hall at the beginning of February. You will be able to visit this exhibition, read the planning documents, evidence and technical studies – and also leave comments/feedback. Further details will be released in due course.
- A Public Meeting will be held on Monday 28 February 2022 at 7pm, where all feedback received can be discussed. Details on how to register for the meeting will be available nearer the time.
I have questions – who can I ask?
There is an FAQs page on the Parish Council’s Cemex microsite through which you can submit questions. We will then update this page regularly with answers to those questions submitted. Being open with you: we may not always be able to answer all questions – either because we don’t yet have the information, or because it would not be in the community’s interest to share confidential elements of the strategy. However, we will strive to keep you as fully updated as possible wherever we can.
What action is Hamble Parish Council taking at present?
The Parish Council has taken the decisive step to appoint an experienced planning consultant with local knowledge to help us develop our strategy. We’ve also reached out to colleagues at Eastleigh Borough Council and in our neighbouring parishes – Hound & Netley and Bursledon. We’re in active discussions with Keith House, Eastleigh Borough Council Leader and Hamble’s representative with Hampshire County Council; and with Paul Holmes, our MP for Eastleigh.
To assess the impact of the potential excavation on our local community, we have set up four working groups. The shared goals for each of these groups is to explore different angles relating to the proposed excavation, including:
· Identifying potential weaknesses in Cemex’s application
· Safeguarding the interests of those living nearest to the Hamble Airfield site and identifying areas of particular concern
· If the planning application is granted to Cemex, to negotiate the best possible restoration outcome for the community
Details of the working groups’ activities will be posted to the Cemex microsite.
What are the next steps?
The public consultation period will commence on 21 January 2022, and expires on 4 March 2022. The nature of the scheme means that there will be considerable evidence submitted with the application that HCC will have to assess before it can make a decision. Realistically this process could take anywhere between 6 – 12 months. During this time we will be exploring every avenue to check and challenge the evidence, to raise issues with HCC, and to consider the best outcome for the village if the scheme is approved.
We would urge you to fully participate in the public consultation process so that the views of Hamble residents can be fully considered alongside the application.