Councillors in Church Stretton have challenged a decision to scrap a £70,000 project to widen pavements on one of the town’s busiest roads.
Members of Church Stretton Town Council believe the decision to ditch the town centre enhancement scheme, which would have seen eight on-street parking spaces in High Street removed to enable the pavement to be widened, was based on “last minute scaremongering” by the Concerned Residents of Stretton campaign group.
They have now sent a formal complaint to Shropshire Council’s monitoring officer in a bid to overturn the decision, which was made by members of Shropshire Council’s south planning committee on January 3.
Christine Harvey, town clerk, said councillors also wanted to “re-build trust and harmony” between the council and residents and said the issue had proved divisive in the local community.
There was £35,000 in funding from Shropshire Council’s Market Towns Revitalisation Programme for the scheme which had been discussed for several years by councillors and the community. Plans were given the go-ahead last year.
But hundreds signed a petition calling for the existing layout to stay, amid claims it could drive out elderly and disabled shoppers.
Mrs Harvey said: “The reversal of the decision to widen the pavement, made following a site visit and public consultation, undermined local democratic engagement by opting to support last minute scaremongering over formal public consultation and the repeated recommendations of the town council.”
Peter Kitchen