Chadwell phone mast plan fails to win councillors over

THURROCK councillors have called on mobile phone operator 02 to think again over plans for a new radio station in Chadwell St Mary.

At a meeting of the council’s planning committee councillors decided not to give their approval to the 45 foot high structure on land at the junction of Riverview, Woodview and Chadwell by-pass, instead asking 02 to find a new site.

That was despite the fact that the application had previously been rejected and 02 urged to come up with changes – which were included in the second application.

That prompted planning chairman councillor Stuart St Clair Haslam to warn the council risked incurring costs through a possible appeal, only to be told by former committee chairman Steve Veryard: “I’m not going to sit here and be bullied by these people.”

Councillor Barrie Lawrence also called on the committee to stick by its decision, saying: “Come the end of the day we sometimes have to take a chance in life. We may lose, we may win but we should not let the threat of appeal cloud our views.

“This is a real blot on the landscape and our residents expect us to take that chance.”

In its application O2 said that it had looked at a number of sites in the area, including Chadwell Place, Sandy Lane, Bowerman Road, Rigby Gardens and the Daniels pub in Longhouse Lane.

None were considered suitable and an alternative, locating the mast at nearby Thurrock & Basildon College had been declined by the college because of its own development plans.

However, ward councillor Tony Fish spoke to the meeting and said: “There has been no consultation with ward councillors by the applicant. There is a need for this kind of installation in Chadwell but this is not the right place to put it.”

Councillor Joy Redsell raised fears over health issues and the siting of mobile masts. “Nobody knows the risk of these masts, this is the wrong place, it’s too near schools,” she said.

Councillor Peter Harris pointed out that the phone company was in a difficult position because “everybody has a mobile phone or wants one and these mast have to go somewhere.”

But it was the decision of the committee that River View is not that place and they have urged the operators to find a new location.