Fiona Scott
Appearances
The Planet Reigate Podcast
59: Redhill’s tower block plans denied, spooky local Halloween stories… and more
£75,951.
The Planet Reigate Podcast
59: Redhill’s tower block plans denied, spooky local Halloween stories… and more
Speechless, absolutely feeling fantastic. You're speechless. It's wonderful, wonderful. Amazing. I don't know what to say, really. It's just a shock. It's really lovely to see a consideration, the practical considerations. We've been trying to work with the developers. We've tried to communicate with them. We've pounded doors. We've wrote loads of letters.
The Planet Reigate Podcast
59: Redhill’s tower block plans denied, spooky local Halloween stories… and more
We've kept the same message, the consistency of the message, and we've never shifted from that. And what was amazing was seeing our voted, elected members listening to us and listening to over 2,000 people who wrote letters of objection. 2,000, that's massive.
The Planet Reigate Podcast
59: Redhill’s tower block plans denied, spooky local Halloween stories… and more
Well, we had two presentations with them, yeah.
The Planet Reigate Podcast
59: Redhill’s tower block plans denied, spooky local Halloween stories… and more
There wasn't a compromise. We don't remember seeing a compromise.
The Planet Reigate Podcast
59: Redhill’s tower block plans denied, spooky local Halloween stories… and more
Redhill is a traditional railway Victorian town. We were built on the railway, we were built around the railway. It's been a wonderful place. I mean, I've been living here, like I said, nearly 40 years now, It's a typical commuter town as well. We work hard.
The Planet Reigate Podcast
59: Redhill’s tower block plans denied, spooky local Halloween stories… and more
And it's only really in the last seven or eight years that they've started building or converting offices to flats, which, OK, we need the housing, which is fine, but that doesn't give a licence for someone to come in and say, we're going to do 15 storeys. Not just that, there were two. One was 14 storeys, one was 15. Two massive buildings.
The Planet Reigate Podcast
59: Redhill’s tower block plans denied, spooky local Halloween stories… and more
And there's something you can do with that site.
The Planet Reigate Podcast
59: Redhill’s tower block plans denied, spooky local Halloween stories… and more
In a way, that was almost as equally as a reason as what we were fighting for as much as the actual towers themselves, because it just didn't make any sense. Why move everybody around? The taxi drivers would be out of business. There's no main station anywhere that you have taxis. The main taxi queue at the back of the station, people come out and want a taxi.
The Planet Reigate Podcast
59: Redhill’s tower block plans denied, spooky local Halloween stories… and more
Moving everything round would have just been, I think some of the councillors said, it's a punishment for the residents.
The Planet Reigate Podcast
59: Redhill’s tower block plans denied, spooky local Halloween stories… and more
What we'd love is for the council to come to us and work with us and say, OK, how do we make this wonderful? And actually look at the future, look at the next 50 years, listening to the residents. Now, what is going to happen is they will no doubt appeal. And that's another story. We'll see where we come and talk to you then. I've lived in Redhill for a good number of years.
The Planet Reigate Podcast
59: Redhill’s tower block plans denied, spooky local Halloween stories… and more
There were a lot of people watching online, lots and lots of them.
The Planet Reigate Podcast
59: Redhill’s tower block plans denied, spooky local Halloween stories… and more
Really, really relieved because the thought of it would have just ruined this town forever. It would have been an absolute catastrophe. We were already thinking what we would do. We'd have to raise money, maybe do a judicial review, all sorts of things. We've worked for like two years now. And it's been a wonderful journey. Ecstatic is the word, really.
The Planet Reigate Podcast
59: Redhill’s tower block plans denied, spooky local Halloween stories… and more
Absolutely relieved, fantastically pleased, delighted with our councillors for seeing reason.