RESIDENTS have issued a warning to city councillors over plans for another 130 student rooms in Exeter.
The plans for the student block on the site of the car park of the Rougemont Telephone Exchange in Queen Street are recommended for approval when the city planning committee meets on Monday evening.
However, Christine Fraser, chair of the St David's Neighbourhood Partnership has told the Echo: "St David's Neighbourhood Partnership (SDNP) may decide to seek a judicial review if this application is approved on Monday evening.
"Two Freedom of Information requests to the city council asking for precise numbers of students in blocks, apartments and in HMOs in the neighbourhood produced one poor response which was inaccurate and incomplete - the second FOI was not replied to.
"Some 18 months ago, when SDNP presented an objection to another planning application, the planning committee members were surprised that in their calculation of actual student numbers under Article 4, (which restricts homeowners turning properties into HMOs, houses in multiple occupation) officers had specifically excluded purpose-build student accommodation.
"An undertaking was given that, in order to assure 'balanced communities', student numbers would be calculated on HMOs and include purpose-built student accommodation. "The planning officers appear not to have amended and updated Article 4 to include this .
"Indeed, we believe they are now making decisions based on the inadequate and incomplete information given the poor quality of the reply to the Freedom of Information request we submitted regarding student numbers.
"You can't make a decision without the full facts, surely?"
Nigel FitzHugh is to speak at the planning meeting on behalf of fellow residents against the application.
Mr FitzHugh said: "Objections are on two fronts.
"One is on the ever increasing student accommodation provision in the city and in this area particularly, it seems that it breaches even the city council's own targets.
"It is a bubble which will burst when student numbers start falling and the city will be left with a load of buildings unsuitable for any other use.
"The second is on the closeness of the building to Marcus House. It is twice as near as it should be for its height – again it contravenes all the city council's own guidelines for access to light and so on."
