A LETTER signed by more than 100 objectors has been sent to the director of a controversial housing development.

Bloor Homes plan to build 150 homes on a five hectare site at Crossways Field. The scheme has been criticised as the site has been earmarked as employment land in the West of England Joint Spatial Plan.

A leaflet entitled ‘Land at Crossways: Which Way Forward?’ was recently delivered to residents.

Thornbury councillors Maggie Tyrrell and Jayne Stansfield sent the letter to Mr Bloor after last week’s town council meeting.

Cllr Stansfield said:“We weren’t expecting the levels of support we’ve got.

“We’ve only sent the letter for people to sign to residents relatively close to the site as we have no way of knowing how far this leaflet was delivered in Thornbury, so to have 100 people back the campaign is fantastic.” I’m looking forward to sending the letter tonight to see if Bloor Homes [the developer] have a response that shows they’re prepared to listen to the real anger in our community.”

Cllr Tyrrell added: “We’ve been fighting against unsustainable development in Thornbury for some time, but to get this leaflet bringing the fight so close to home was a shock.

“Nobody denies the housing crisis in this country, but the levels of four and five bedroom executive homes currently swamping Thornbury isn’t a solution to that problem.

“The lanes around Crossways are crucial for leisure pursuits and access to the countryside and the roads are nowhere near suitable for carrying extra traffic. Bloor needs to go back to the drawing board and think about the impact they have on communities with schemes like this.”

A spokeswoman for Bloor Homes said: “Bloor believes this site is suitable for development and located within a sustainable settlement that is well-related to the existing town and amenities of Thornbury.

“If we are to meet the government housebuilding target of 300,000 homes a year then suitable sites within sustainable locations like Thornbury need to help address the crisis.

The JSP proposes employment land is accommodated at Crossways and we recognise the sustainability credentials of the site but feel a more balanced approach to homes and employment delivery is required. We don’t intend to withdraw the application.”