Chesham Masterplan

10/04/2022

Really heartening proportion of yourChesham April edition given over to debate about the longer-term future of the town. In addition to our update on the Chesham Masterplan Star Yard concept consultation, the Chesham Town Council page details their first-stage consultation on the Chesham Neighbourhood Plan, WITH A 2-PAGE FORM FOR RESIDENTS TO FILL IN AND RETURN (closing date next Friday, April 15th), and much of the Letters section is given over to views on the town's long-term future.
Followers of this page continue to rise - thank you to new joiners, all welcome to join and develop the debate.
Online version of April edition of YourChesham here: https://en.calameo.com/read/007050545fdef098dce44

20/03/2022

What's missing from Buckinghamshire Council's Planning and Regeneration Portfolio Capital Programme for the next 4 years? Chesham, that's what. For far too long Chesham has been overlooked for investment. This is the conversation that is needed, and urgently.

This week Chesham Town Council launched its consultation on a Neighbourhood Plan. We strongly encourage residents to complete the questionnaire: https://s.surveyplanet.com/rdg27xth. We are pleased also to see extensive references to its support of the principles of the Masterplan.

But please don't expect immediate progress. This is not the statutory formal consultation that takes place before submission of a Neighbourhood Plan - to do that, a complete draft neighbourhood plan or Order needs to be in place. The Town Council started work on the Neighbourhood Plan in 2020 so we think we'll be waiting a couple of years for a final Plan to emerge.

We feel there is much greater urgency for the regeneration of Chesham, with investment needing to be attracted from private as well as public sources. This was the basis of Chesham Masterplan and remains so. Our consultation for Star Yard redevelopment remains open at https://tinyurl.com/2puu8pnn Your responses will help us develop necessary conversations within the Chesham Regeneration Group and elsewhere.

12/03/2022

(Apologies if you heave read this twice - unintentionally it got attached as a comment to an earlier post)
Genuine thanks for all comments. Hannah says she'd like to see this start a conversation - and that's very much the intention. It may be more accurate to call the 'proposal' a 'concept', and the mixed reception has already provided points for conversation! Feedback from local residents will be very helpful in taking the conversation forward. Not least in the 'Chesham Regeneration Group' which includes Buckinghamshire and Town Councils as well as partners such as us. The elephant in the room remains how and when Chesham will get some investment. Whether that is used, as Zarich prefers, in maintaining what we do have and spending money on roads, drainage, and sorting out Skottowes Pond, or something more comprehensive - it would be nice to be in the position to make that choice.
The questionnaire remains open:

Chesham Masterplan - Star Yard Development Consultation

09/03/2022

March edition of yourChesham is now online. If you haven't had a physical copy, you can read the latest article on the Star Yard proposal here: https://en.calameo.com/read/0052756026dd571493877
In terms of numbers, we've had an excellent response to the questionnaire - thank you to all who have responded. If you have yet to respond, the questionnaire can be reached at https://tinyurl.com/2puu8pnn

Delivered FREE Issue 136 March 2022 Advertise wisely yourChesham Connecting the community – Over 11,000 copies delivered every month Chesham of yourChesham supporting local business the future? Chesham Renaissance want your views…...

05/03/2022

The March yourChesham magazine includes a follow-up article to our February introduction to the consultation on a concept for Star Yard. The full text is available also on our website: https://cheshammasterplan.org/yourchesham-march-2022/

That our proposal has provoked debate and controversy has been no surprise. But whilst many have commented that they aren't in favour of the design, very few (if any) have said that Chesham is fine as it is, and just leave it alone.

That, too, is no surprise. It is widely recognised that capital investment in Chesham in recent years has been inadequate, and that a new lease of life for the town centre is needed.

But the elephant in the room remains - how will Chesham receive the investment it deserves? Chiltern District Council failed to adopt an acceptable Plan; we are promised a Neighbourhood Plan by the Town Council but it is yet to see the light of day; and the new Buckinghamshire Authority is several years away from producing their Local Plan. Can we allow this drift to continue, and in any case, do we want all decisions to be made by officers in Aylesbury? That's our fear if the Chesham community doesn't say what it wants.

We know that we need to provide more dwellings, and from the earlier Consultation it is clear that building on brownfield land within the town is more acceptable than depleting Green Belt. We believe that the rest of the town will be reinvigorated when the centre of the town is regenerated, and that attracting people to live in the centre is an essential part of it.

These are some of the starting points behind our proposal. Please consider the new article in yourChesham, perhaps return to the earlier one, also available on our website: https://cheshammasterplan.org/773-2/

And please take part in the consultation, to help shape the conversation and get investment inChesham back on the agenda. Link: https://tinyurl.com/2puu8pnn

‘yourChesham’ March 2022 March 5, 2022 The article from Andrew Ketteringham in last month’s edition certainly generated much interest and responses on our website and social media and that is what we wanted. The ‘we’ is Chesham Renaissance Community Interest Company – a small group of lo...

17/02/2022

For those who haven't had a hard copy, Jan/Feb issue of yourChesham now available online, at https://en.calameo.com/read/0052756029adbf640e16e
Star Yard consultation article on pp8-9

17/02/2022

Prompted by historic image of posted by Pete Hawkes on OurChesham... Images of Star Yard as it was, as it is and as per proposal under consultation.

Whether or not you agree that the present proposal has merit, looking at the 'current' image it's very hard to argue against the NEED for investment and regeneration. Even before COVID we were forever bogged down in process and bureaucracy and the need has become ever more urgent.

By participating in the consultation we can help get the conversation back on the agenda. We shall analyse responses, share the results, discuss with bodies including the Chesham Regeneration Group, and use local opinion to inform further ideas. Link: https://tinyurl.com/2puu8pnn

15/02/2022

Concerns over flooding, drainage, sewage handling etc have been expressed in relation to the Star Yard consultation. These questions, based often on bitter experience, highlight the very need for a joined-up approach to development in Chesham. This is what the Masterplan seeks to promote. Piecemeal development will do nothing to put right the infrastructure challenges that have built up over decades, and in fact will exacerbate them.

Again we stress that the Star Yard consultation is not a set of detailed plans, rather a proposal seeking feedback. Please help by completing the questionnaire:

Chesham Masterplan - Star Yard Development Consultation

11/02/2022

Who disagrees that the regeneration of Chesham and particularly the High Street is urgent? But how that is achieved, and even how to get the ball rolling, are trickier questions. That's the purpose of Chesham Renaissance - a Community Interest Company formed by a group of locals which isn't here to make profits, and will invest any surpluses into the Chesham community.

Feedback from residents will help provide impetus for discussions and eventually, we hope, action. We are a member of Chesham Regeneration Group (CRG), set up by Buckinghamshire Council to include Buckinghamshire and Chesham Town Councillors, local business and property owners, and other stakeholder groups.

We are particularly anxious that big decisions about Chesham are taken as much as possible by Chesham and its residents. Your opinion really matters.

Chesham Masterplan - Star Yard Development Consultation

10/02/2022

Thank you to residents who have asked where the Star Yard parking has gone in our proposal. The proposal is to have ample parking capacity below the development, not less than the original capacity of Star Yard plus the requirements of the new dwellings.
Please be assured that, in proposing a scheme which seeks to bring vibrancy, accommodation, employment and hospitality to the town centre, we agree that car parking is critical.
Link to consultation: https://cheshammasterplan.org/consultation-on-star-yard-development/

09/02/2022

How does Chesham meet its future needs while remaining a great place for residents to live, businesses to thrive and visitors to enjoy? How can this be achieved without despoiling the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB), the Green Belt and features of which Chesham is justly proud? Developing guidance and managing such change was the key reason for developing Chesham Masterplan, and our original consultation in 2017/18 was very well received. A new consultation now asks for feedback on a concept for development at the centre of the town, around Star Yard. This follows the same principles. Thank you to all who have already submitted feedback formally, as well as participating in discussions. These will all help us in evaluating further and modifying the proposal. Some feelings have been expressed strongly, and we understand the ideas presented are quite dramatic. It is clear that additional explanation would be helpful, in particular to clarify certain important points. We shall be posting on this forum in coming days to address certain of these. We also invite residents to raise their questions.
Link to explanatory press release: https://cheshammasterplan.org/773-2/
Link to consultation: https://cheshammasterplan.org/consultation-on-star-yard-development/

Consultation on Star Yard development February 4, 2022 Cheshamam Renaissance will welcome your views and comments so please complete and submit the Star Yard Consultation, February 2022 – (click to open in new page) or complete below