Objectors see red over
green
business park
by Kate Scotter, Archant
(Evening News, April 14, 2008)
Pioneering plans for Norfolk's first purpose-built
green office development have been met with opposition
from families living close to the proposed site.
The Dakenham Project would see the development of 20
offices on the border of Salhouse and Rackheath, on Station
Road, Salhouse, powered by renewable energy sources such
as wind turbines.
Plans have been submitted to Broadland District Council
for the scheme which is aimed at small businesses with
a green conscience.
However, people living near to the proposed development
have claimed the proposals are “inappropriate” for
the area.
Stephen Heard, 53, who lives on Station Road, said: “There
are lots of oncerns, lots of local residents who are
not happy with it, and are worried that it will get steam-rolled
through.
“It’s one development in a wrong place and
it’s
inappropriate for a village such as Salhouse.
“It’s not as green as it’s portraying
to be and we are concerned people are using the so-called
green
bandwagon to get developments through.”
The proposals would see two buildings built on the 3.7
acre (1.5ha) site with facilities for cyclists, car parking
for 86 cars, wind turbines, recycling facilities for
waste produced within the offices, a footpath to Salhouse
railway station and additional tree planting.
It is hoped that, if given the scheme is given the go-ahead,
workers would use trains to travel to and from the business
park. However, critics have pointed out that trains only
run once an hour and every other hour they do not stop
in Salhouse.
Paul Knowles, chairman of Norwich-based developer Building
Partnerships, which is behind the plans, said the site
had been specifically chosen because it sits above an
aquifer, a water-bearing layer of materials, including
gravel, silt, or clay, which can be harnessed to heat
and cool the buildings using ground source heat pumps.
He added the location enables the maximum use of natural
light, which would in turn reduce energy usage for all
of the buildings.
He said: “Businesses are increasingly made aware
of their environmental responsibilities, but there are
few real chances for small businesses in particular to
make a noticeable difference to their environmental impact.
This project has been carefully designed to help
businesses to bridge this gap and test some innovative
green technologies. For example,
the buildings will be constructed from sustainable materials
which can help to save up to 85pc of the carbon used
by conventional buildings.”
Andrew Boswell, deputy convenor of the Green Group on
Norfolk County Council,
said: “We very much welcome these kinds of schemes.
What we need to be doing is moving much more towards
onsite renewable energy generation and the government
to provide the framework to make this possible.”
Developers hope the project, if given the green light
by the district council’s planning
committee, would be finished by the end of 2009.
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