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Environment Agency opposes park cafe for fear of flooding, despite flood alleviation scheme





Newbury Town Council is seeking planning permission for a new café, with indoor and outdoor seating, catering facilities, public toilets, changing room facilities, an office and storage space, in the place of the existing cafe building, which currently homes a small cafe kiosk and a storeroom for park and boating equipment.
However, the chairman of the council’s Victoria Park working group, David Allen (Lib Dem, Victoria), revealed this week that timescales were being delayed due to the Environment Agency posing serious concerns on the impact the building could have on the surrounding area as it was being built on a floodplain.
This is despite the flood alleviation scheme recently completed across parts of central Newbury, including in Victoria Park, installed by the Environment Agency itself.
It means that some areas of the proposed building, including the storage areas and changing rooms, will need to be raised by approximately 300mm, to allow space under them to accommodate any flood water that may affect the park.
Pictured are the original plans submitted to West Berkshire Council.
“Because of the objections from the Environment Agency we are going to have to modify the plans,” said Mr Allen. “The increased height will allow the building to accommodate some empty voids under the floor that will fill with water in case of some one-in-100 year extreme flooding.
“As these areas had quite high ceilings anyway, nobody should notice. The actual cafe can be at the current level.
“The EA spent £2million, as well as £45,000 from the town council, to put the flood alleviation scheme through Newbury.
“We have now got an objection from the very people who put the scheme in to prevent flooding.
“If anyone puts in a plan around Newbury and thinks they are going to be saved by this flood alleviation scheme it now looks like they may not be.”
He added that it should not affect the cost of the project, already estimated to be in excess of £500,000 as final engineering drawings had not yet been produced for the original plans.
Mr Allen also said that he intended to have a meeting with a senior member of staff at the Environment Agency to discuss the matter.



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