A village up in arms
Christ Church is at the centre of controversy this week over development plans in the village of Binsey, a conservation area in the Green Belt a mile off the Botley Road. The college had applied to the council for planning permission on Manor Farm, to which some of the village's 24 residents have reacted with outrage.
The plans, described by a group calling themselves The Binsey Residents Association as "not practical for an affordable housing scheme," were rejected by Oxford City Council, for the second time in as many years. The refusal stemmed from advice given by the Environment Agency, as Binsey is situated within a major flood plain. Paul Lindon, speaking on behalf of Christ Church, told The OxStu, "Ignoring the flooding, everything would have been approved". He claims that the college is "acting in accordance with advice from the Council." The college has launched an appeal against the decision.
For two of the last three years the area has, at some stage, been entirely cut off by flooding, meaning that emergency services cannot reach the village, which has several elderly inhabitants. Christ Church plan to solve this problem by building a mile-long raised causeway, which, it has been claimed, will be up to a metre high, a danger to traffic, obtrusive and will disrupt the flow of floodwater. Binsey Residents Association have said, "This seems mad."
The development would involve replacing a barn with two three- bedroom houses and one four- bedroom house to be sold. While Smith-Woolley, the agents representing Christ Church, initially claimed the barn to be redundant, the Residents Association assured The OxStu that, although "ugly", the barn is used for the storage of hay and straw, and sheltering a parishioner's "endangered pigs" during the flood season. The spokesman later admitted that the barns did indeed have this "very limited usage".
In addition to this, Binsey residents are opposing the move on cultural and nostalgic grounds. Lewis Caroll composed Alice in Wonderland in Binsey, after a picnic in the surrounding area, and Gerald Manley Hopkins wrote about the Binsey Poplars. Residents are desperate to see "the sad saga of the poets resolved". It was also a historic site of pilgrimage for St Frideswide, patron saint of Oxford. A resident of Binsey talking about recent speculation told The OxStu that they did not have a problem with students but said, "It would ruin Binsey if they do put modern houses up".
Mr Lindon claimed, "There isn't a Binsey Residents Association. They don't represent everybody's opinion." However, a barmaid at The Perch pub, which is owned by Christ Church, told The OxStu, "Nobody in Binsey wants it, so I think they would be wrong to do it." Lindon maintained that the college is "not just acting as the 'Big Bad Landlord'; we're trying to co-operate."
The Dean of Christ Church sent a letter of explanation to all concerned, which stated that it, "would be improper for [him] to comment" and the college has "little control" over the issue. "We believe it will be of benefit to all and help Binsey flourish as a community." This was fiercely denied by the Residents Association who told The OxStu, "We make friends with everyone who moves in almost at once, but Christ Church seems to want to move people through at an incredible rate. We do not want our village gutted."
22nd Apr 2004