Not in my back-garden centre!

John Dipre of the Dipre family-run Marsden Nurseries Ltd, owners of the Epsom bordering Ashtead Park Garden Centre in Pleasure Pit Road, has applied to Mole Valley District Council to demolish this popular garden centre and restaurant and build on the site 26 two to four-bedroom houses.

Neighbours are up in arms and objections are mounting before the consultation deadline of 25^th April passes. Objectors point out that recently the Council had removed the site from an area for potential development. It is said to occupy a sensitive area of the Green Belt as it separates Epsom from Ashtead. The roads around are narrow and bendy and already hazardous. Public transport is threadbare. The Langley Vale E5 bus every two to three hours that crosses Epsom is the only one apart from a weekday daily school service.

The Applicant, John Dipre, has been involved as Director of no less than 120 registered companies, most of which have been in homes, investments and property. He claims that the proposed development will be an improvement for nature as presently most of the land is tarmac and his plans will see trees, hedges and grassy areas grow.

No affordable housing is planned for the development.

The full plans can be seen via molevalley.gov.uk/planningsearch and enter MO/2022/0474

Issues relating to development, housing, planning, brownfield sites and affordable housing are addressed in an opinion piece exclusively for the Epsom and Ewell Times by Tim Murphy you can read HERE.

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