We need a proper housing strategy for Shepway

Local Lib Dem Gary Fuller wants more detailed planning of new building works in Shepway.

With the Shorncliffe Garrison Development looming, the valid concerns about how this will affect local infrastructure have eclipsed concerns about the size of the properties that will be built on the site.

Commenting, Gary said:

"When phase one of this development was discussed, the significance of the local architecture and the need to improve the local infrastructure were important concerns, and rightly so. What was missed however was the complete lack of one and two bed affordable properties in this plan.

There has been a worrying trend in the past few years to take perfectly suitable family homes and turn them into tiny flats and bedsits. Instead of trying to shoehorn people into tiny properties that aren't fit for that purpose, we should be focussing on building more affordable new build one and two bed properties.

Shepway District Council needs to be much more proactive in its planning strategy for our area. If existing developers aren't willing to fulfill the needs of local people then the Council should be actively seeking to take ownership of brown field sites in order to do so. Housing provision should be driven by the needs of local people and not by shareholders or profit margins."