THE Spring meeting of Arts Taunton may have been frustrating but it was instructive in a way perhaps not intended, and well supported by councillors.

It was clear that Taunton was taking a developer’s step-by-step approach to new building in the town. 

We were offered no joined-up thinking as to how the Coal Orchard would relate to the new plans for the Brewhouse or how both these would relate to Firepool. 

Is it the problem that there is not a top senior council officer in charge of the whole “vision”?

Both residents and the council want to put the river at the heart of Taunton. Yet the plans still put a substantial three-storey block between the piazza and the Tone, taking away both the sun from the piazza (with cars on it?) and excluding the view of the latter.

READ MORE: New plans for Coal orchard in Taunton revealed

It also appears that Taunton Deane’s idea of a city seems to be to copy Exeter or Bristol as a shopping venue with a John Lewis ‘anchor’ store. 
This is, for many, a once or twice a year special outing. Taunton will not get rich on that. What do we mean by “city?”

People now shop online and work from home. The money currently is with the grey pound who are getting rid of stuff. They live in or come into towns/cities for the social and cultural life. 

That is the future and we need to aim for real quality and open up competition to quality developers. 

Taunton must offer interesting architecture and design and quality products that reflect its unique offer. A Bristol/Exeter look-alike misses the point. It is a non-starter.

The Taunton Garden Town bid is part of this – it is nothing to do with the concept of Letchworth Garden City which is evolved out of a village into a garden suburb of 33,500. 

READ MORE: LETTER: Plan for Coal Orchard is a 'hideous scheme'

The suburb is a dated solution to housing needs which still dominates planning development and negates our interdependence and need to give and receive support to and from each other. (This is what is literally meant by community.) It also works against our health and well-being agenda.

As for parking by the Brewhouse, is it beyond the wit of Taunton Deane to negotiate with Morrisons longer slots of free parking after say 7pm? (A GCSE level Computer Sciences programming exercise?)

D BRADLEY
Kingston St Mary