Sadie Le Sueur-Rennard made the comments following the release of the Draft Bridging Island Plan, which includes proposals for around 90 homes by Prince’s Tower Road, 102 units opposite the former JEP offices and 20 properties on part of the former Longueville Nurseries site.
She said the parish ‘can’t cope with any more housing’ and that a number of parishioners were ‘hotly against’ the plans.
The Constable also said that Jersey needs to establish an immigration plan which ‘caps’ the number of people who can live in the Island.
‘I understand where people are coming from,’ she said. ‘I said a long time ago that St Saviour has had enough – we can’t cope with any more [housing]. There are no provisions for schools or open spaces mentioned in the plans at all and most of the schools in the parish are oversubscribed.’
The issue of overcrowded schools was recently raised by children’s commissioner Deborah McMillan, who expressed concern over ‘outdated’ facilities in town ‘bursting at the seams’. Additionally, Russell Price, the headteacher of Rouge Bouillon School, wrote to the Public Accounts Committee over the state of the site and its lack of adequate space.
St Saviour resident Mary O’Keeffe has established a community Facebook page for parishioners to share their opinions, which has led to a campaign against the proposed housing being earmarked for St Saviour.
‘We are concerned about urban sprawl and loss of community spirit,’ she said. ‘The roundabout at Five Oaks has five feeder roads off it – the road simply can’t sustain more traffic. St Saviour is becoming a conurbation of St Helier, losing its identity and soul.’
Mrs Le Sueur-Rennard said that it was a ‘difficult situation’ given the current demand for housing in the Island, but that it also related to wider issues such as Jersey’s immigration policies.
‘We need an immigration plan – every time we have an Island Plan we are still playing catch up,’ she said.
‘I think that we should cap the number of people who can come in and who can’t. We are a nine-by-five island and we can’t just keep reclaiming land.’
And referencing proposals which were ultimately dismissed to build the new hospital in St Saviour, the Constable added: ‘I can’t see how we couldn’t have a hospital because of the traffic volume but all of a sudden we can have hundreds of houses,’ she said. ‘It’s so unfair.’
Environment Minister John Young said: ‘We are in a draft plan process and we are seeking public comment. The fields selected for development have gone through a long [selection] process and set of criteria.’
He added that the final site choices would be subject to a ‘detailed planning brief’ that would address the issues of open spaces, schools and public amenities.
‘The intention here is not to create wall-to-wall housing,’ he said.
The Deputy said that traffic was an issue ‘everywhere’ in the Island and that he wanted to see more sustainable transport developed.
