After my urging for the owners of Vale House to hold an open community meeting about their planned changes, Ede Builders and Botley Alzheimers Home hosted a Q&A session on 2 Dec 2011. It was well-attended by members of the community, as well as community leaders: I spotted county councillor Janet Godden, district councillors Eric Batts and John Woodford, a Cumnor parish councillor, but I didn’t see any North Hinksey parish councillors.
The atmosphere was somewhat heated, as many people expressed their strong concerns and fears about the intended use of the building as an HMO. Most of these concerns can also be seen in the letters posted on the Vale website.
On the 9th of December 2011, Ede withdrew their application. Their withdrawal letter, which can be viewed on the planning web page, http://bit.ly/sYfMne , says they plan to re-submit quickly, and that they’re likely to request permission to convert to flats.
Once a new Planning Application is received, I’ll post details on this site, on the page called Planning Applications.