AN Alton woman, whose Church Street property backs on to the townÕs existing tip in Victoria Road, has expressed extreme anger over the sudden surge of opposition to Hampshire County CouncilÕs plan to build a new household waste and recycling centre on land at the Omega Business Park.
Mother of two, Lynette Marlow, points out that local residents have been campaigning for the past 25 years to have the Victoria Road tip removed.
ÒIt is too small and it certainly should not be in the centre of a residential area,Ó says Mrs Marlow who points out that the tip opens at 8 am every weekday morning with lorries queuing to get in for at least half an hour before that. It closes at 4-30 pm and is open also for a limited period over the weekend.
ÒWe have to put up with the noise, smell and rubbish coming over the fence from the tip seven days a week. On Sunday it is like a car boot sale over there and if the tip is closed people still throw their rubbish over or just leave it at the gate. On top of that it causes traffic obstructions in Victoria Road where there is already a problem with on-street parking,Ó she told The Herald.
ÒPeople living round here are desperate to get rid of the tip. Even the men who work there feel it is too small. It is an ugly place and it devalues our properties. Nobody wants to buy a house next door to a rubbish site,Ó she said.
While acknowledging the need for a household waste and recycling centre in the town, Mrs Marlow believes it has to be in the right place. ÒI have lived here for 13 years and have been campaigning for its removal ever since. The council has spent years looking for a suitable location. Unlike us, those people working on the industrial estate will not have to ÔliveÕ next to the tip. They can go home at 5 pm and forget about it. We canÕt.Ó
In her opinion, the Omega Business Park is a far more suitable location than Victoria Road. ÒThere wonÕt be children living and playing near the tip. In the past we have had needles and all sorts left there which could be potentially dangerous to children,Ó she said.
According to a spokesperson for Hampshire County Council, land has been purchased at Omega Park to enable the replacement of the existing Òvery smallÓ household waste and recycling centre at Victoria Road and work is due to start on the new facility within the next month.
This will be a two phase project with the construction of a new access road being followed by the waste centre itself which, weather permitting, should be up and running early next summer.
The scheme will also include a comprehensive landscaping plan which should, in time, screen it from neighbouring properties.
ÒThe new centre will be better suited for the purpose than the current town centre site which is small and too close to residential properties,Ó confirmed the spokesperson.