Western Gazette

I see that Framptonos has reached this illustrious newspaper. Did I really say all those things? Well, most of them. However I did not say that someone should have complained about the development before it began because I knew perfectly well that they had. This was the main problem - that even with strong local opposition it still went through.

English Heritage's hand in the matter is still uncertain. In order to get to the bottom of it I have asked them for a copy of all the documents in their possession to be sent to me under the Freedom of Information Act. I will let you know what I receive.

The role of elected representatives.

One interesting aspect of the New Frampton Court disaster is the role of local representatives at District Council level. In general elected representatives are expected to represent the views of those who elected them. Of course they cannot always do this because sometimes they have to take into account the greater good (carcass rendering plants have to go somewhere, for example) and electorates are not neccesarily uniform entities - electors may disagree within a ward. It must be said that neither of these two exceptions apply here.

First there was absolutely no imperative to build New Frampton Court; it did not have to be built in Frampton, it did not have to be built anywhere. If the plot of land was suitable for housing then something vastly more acceptable could have been insisted upon. Secondly the people of Frampton spoke with one voice, and loudly, in opposition to the proposal and there is not the slightest reason to think that anyone else in West Dorset (whose councillors may have been on the planning committee) would have supported this building.
It appears then that the District Councillors on the planning committee who voted through the proposal were acting against the wishes of the electorate. The question now is why? One explanation for this sort of behaviour was put forward by a District Councillor of my acquaintance. He said that when someone is elected to office they suddenly consider themselves to be an expert in all sorts of specialised areas they know next to nothing about - the safety value of one road layout over another, for example. Often, though not often enough, the technical people in the Council point out the shortcomings of these views, but when it comes to aesthetic expertise there are no such restraints. It is my opinion that where aesthetics are concerned local opinion must be paramount. Here it was ignored.

So, why were the the people of Frampton ignored over this issue? Because the District Councillors thought they knew better.

Spreading the word

My little joke at the expense of New Frampton Court ( Framptonos ) has made it into the Dorchester Echo with a nice piece by Laura Williams. I do not know how much interest it will spark but I have already (14:00hrs) had an enquiry about it from a news agency! I note that the developers Rennaiscance Developments say that everyone is entitled to their opinion, which I think is very sporting of them (I am genuinely not being sarcastic here).
Talking of the Echo here is a link to their article on Frampton losing its battle with the developers. I notice that the fact that the building looks like a Continental holiday complex was originally spotted long ago by Frampton's Peter Emery.

Welcome to the real world.

Just to start things off I will say that it has been great fun creating the Framptonos spoof and thank you to all who have said nice things about it.

I have been driving past the "New Frampton Court" development for some months now and have seen it grow. But I cannot say it really registered because I simply did not believe the evidence of my own eyes. Only recently have I come to recognise it for what it is - an architectural abomination of staggering inelegance; an alien intrusion into a village that, up until now, had enjoyed a gentle architecture of remarkable coherence. My characterisation of it as a holiday resort is far too kind. It looks more like the sort of building that Amnesty International would take an interest in.

The planning system seems to have gone seriously wrong here. I am told that Frampton Parish Council objected most strongly to the proposal and that there was considerable local opposition. However the project was supported by English Heritage and ultimately by West Dorset District Council. What either of these bodies were thinking of I cannot imagine. Sometimes artful models or artists impressions can give an optimistic spin on the most abysmal of projects but I have seen the artist's impression of this one and can tell you that it is faithful to the bleakness of the finished building.

When I asked permission to take the photos I asked the foreman if he had received any comments from local people. He said that indeed he had but that common decency prevented him from repeating any of them! Incidentally I tried to find the comments from locals and the parish council on WDDC web site (all such are posted as of late 2003). For some reason they are not there. WDDC has not been able to give, as yet, a satisfactory reason for their absence. I am sure that a sensible reason for this omission will be given soon.

Anyway, what do you think?