AN ACTION group in Witham is stepping up its fight to stop a road being built though an estate, by trying to get some land protected as a village green.
Teign Drive residents are opposed to a through-road due to be built on grass that runs between rows of houses on the estate. The road will give access to new houses due to be built on an over-grown piece of land at the back of the cul-de-sac.
Now the Humber Road Residents Association, a group that meets to discuss the interests of the area and support community initiatives, is using this new tactic in the battle with the council.
The action group has applied to Essex County Council for village green status for the land, which would protect the grass area from being concreted over.
Now that the Growth and Infrastructure Act 2013 has been passed, it is no longer possible to apply to register land as a village green if it has been earmarked for development.
However, applications which have already been submitted will be processed and the residents of Teign Drive applied just in time before this piece of legislation hit the statute books.
One of the criteria to gain village green status for the piece of land is that there has to be uninterrupted recreational use for over 20 years and that a significant number of local people use it.
At a Humber Road Estate Community Initiative meeting, chairman Ken Davies said: "To get village green status we have to show the area is set aside for residents.
"This can be proved as there used to be a seat on the green, children use it, and there may be historical artifacts as well as flora and fauna at risk if the road goes ahead.
"The houses were built so residents can see down to the trees.
"Braintree District Council's objections to our proposed alternatives for the road were on grounds of costs, but residents' quality of life will be much lower if the road goes ahead."
As part of the Local Development Framework, Braintree District Council has to build 4,600 houses in the area by 2026.
Fifty of these have been proposed for land off Blunts Hall Road, next to Teign Drive.
Residents collected 185 signatures as part of an earlier petition to take to the public consultation in April last year.
Councillor Bill Rose said: "We're not against houses being built; we're against the road and think it's inappropriate to build here as there are other areas in the town that could be developed.
"We would argue that the houses in this proposal could be absorbed in other developments in the town.
"Witham Town Council fully support the Teign Drive residents in their application for village green status.
"This option has only been taken because it's the cheapest. With the new houses there would be too much through traffic trying to use Humber Road."
