Over 100 people packed out West Hill Village Hall last night to join the brilliant local campaign I’m supporting to save the only shop in the village from demolition.
As the MP for West Hill, I attended the extraordinary meeting called by West Hill Parish Council to hear from residents. The planning application submitted to East Devon District Council proposes demolishing the current shop and replacing it with 9 dwellings and much smaller retail units with only 5 parking spaces.
During the meeting, Morrisons made it clear they wouldn’t be interested in running the replacement retail unit, which would be two-thirds smaller than the existing store. The future of the shop and post office is at serious risk. This ridiculous planning application must be rejected by East Devon District Council.
I have already objected to the planning application and urge residents to do the same by Sunday. You can object by visiting the EDDC Planning Portal (https://planning.eastdevon.gov.uk/online-applications) and searching for 24/0044/FUL.
Many thanks to West Hill Parish Council for organising last night’s meeting which was skilfully chaired by Cllr Alison Carr. The entire council was united against this planning application which was perfectly described by a resident as a “high-density development in a low-density village”. The fight continues!