All the fields and adjacent Sandridgebury Lane flood annually. To this extent, the road has to close for days at a time. Building houses here is only going to make the flooding worse. I for one, would not want to spent a significant amount of money buying a house on a flood plain, and watching as my house floods 4-5 times as year. Whilst I appreciate, the local primary schools could cope with an influx of new pupils from these houses. St Albans just does not have the Secondary School capacity. Coupled with another huge development planned along St Albans Road in Sandridge and a mile away at Sandpit Lane. Secondary School places are difficult enough to secure as it is. Where are all the children supposed to go to school once they reach secondary age? I object to this development on Green Belt Land. St Albans is still adjusting to Oaklands Grange. We do not need more housing developments. We need our green spaces.
I live close to the area and regulary visit hertswood forest. The roads are far too busy for the city to cope with as it is and schools overburdened with pupils on "other" new estates in St albans. The city simply cannot take much more development. I've been here for 20+ years and seen a real decline in happiness of local residents over those years not solely but at least partially due to overdevelopment and it's effect on community.
As a regular figure skater, I can testify to the benefits that skating has had to my mental and physical health over the past 3 years since a rink opened in Bristol.
Bristol is the closest rink to Devon and Cornwall, and we have skaters who travel all the way from Plymouth to train since their local ice rink closed down (a 4.5h round trip on a good day!). It would make a world of difference for athletes and recreational skaters living in Devon and Cornwall to have a rink local to them to train and spend time with peers on the ice.