Speaking during a hearing of the Future Hospital Review Panel this week, panel member Deputy Mary Le Hegarat said she was ‘very disappointed’ that many residents in her district of St Helier No 3/4, who would be affected, had learned that their homes would be impacted only when the proposal to build at Overdale was formally lodged.
Deputy Chief Minister Lyndon Farnham, who chairs the Political Oversight Group for the Our Hospital project, said the owners of the three homes that would be compulsory-purchased under the plans had been spoken to in advance of the announcement, but others living nearby had not. He added that he took the Deputy’s feedback on board and a full engagement process with residents was now under way.
Deputy Le Hegarat had said: ‘We have had significant correspondence in relation to these individuals, who were not spoken to and who were disappointed at finding themselves in the middle of this without any consultation.
‘It is not only about those whose properties are being compulsory purchased but those sharing services within those areas. I am a little disappointed and would have assumed these individuals would have been spoken to.’
She then told the minister: ‘It is more a statement than a question, but I am very disappointed – there has been an awful lot of people who live on Westmount Road [which would be widened under the plans to improve access to the new hospital] in particular who are going to be significantly impacted by this.’
The owners of the properties it is proposed would be compulsory-purchased are said to have been in discussions with a property agent from the Our Hospital Project Team since July and have received letters, telephone calls and have had face-to-face meetings.
However, Senator Farnham said that work was now under way to talk to all residents who could be impacted and added there were ‘a number of ‘concerns’.
‘There are concerns about disruption, there are concerns about the expansion of the road where houses which are in a cul-de-sac are now going to be closer to the road, for example. We have had significant correspondence in relation to these individuals,’ he said.
The Senator also said he would take on board the Deputy’s feedback and added: ‘I’d like to reassure the panel that consultation is now taking place and will be taking place in the weeks ahead.
‘We have spoken to some people and some we haven’t we have asked that they get in touch with us. We are upping our efforts to make sure we speak to everybody who may be impacted, however slightly.’
Project director Richard Bannister went on to tell the panel there had been four options for improving access to Overdale and the widening of Westmount Road was the ‘most deliverable’ option, which it was judged affected the least number of residents.
However, he admitted that the impact on those residents whose homes would be affected was ‘clearly quite devastating’. The proposal would also mean the Jersey Bowling Club would need to move, as the new road would cut through the middle of the facility.
