Oxford Housing Policy

TonyOX3

An open question to Oxford’s candidates in the general Election.

A post by Charles Young (link here) in the Headington & Marston e-democracy forum draws attention to apparent anomalies in the City’s policies on housing and employment. Given the undeniable problems of congestion that blight life in Headington, I would like to ask you this:

If you were elected as an Oxford MP, what if any changes in the City Council’s policies on these issues would you try to use your influence to bring about?

Thank you in anticipation of your reply


Tony OX3

Headington Headlines #199

TonyOX3

Here’s my weekly round-up of local news for 26 January – 1 February.

Traffic woes on the westbound approach to the Headington roundabout were exacerbated on Monday when a manhole collapsed and a lane had to be closed.

The Headington Tesco is not one of the 43 stores the company announced it will be closing (list at bottom of linked page).

Derelict property owner Martin Young, owner of 29 Old High Street, also owns a property on the Cowley Road which the City Council is considering for compulsory purchase because of its dilapidated condition. The house has been empty for over twenty years.

Last year the County Council decided to expand Windmill Primary School @WindmillOxford. Building work to cope with the expansion has still not started and the frustration felt by the Head and others involved with the school broke into the public arena this week.

A large pine tree in Bury Knowle Park was badly damaged by the winds overnight on Wednesday/Thursday. Picture c/o @GeoffMPowell.

Two people were arrested at an address in Bassett Road, Barton on Wednesday. They are suspected of handling stolen goods and possession of class A drugs.

On Tuesday Frontier Estates exhibited their revised proposals for student accommodation on the corner of Latimer Road and London Road.

Active posts on the Headington & Marston e-democracy forum this week:

  • Bookshop?
  • Oxfordshire Transport Strategy
  • Marston Tesco?
I cover news from the OX3 postcode in Headington and out as far as Barton, Sandhills and Risinghurst (see map). To feed into next week’s summary you can comment on this article, or tweet either with the hashtag #ox3 or @mentioning @TonyOX3.

Headington Headlines #198

TonyOX3

Here’s my weekly round-up of local news for 19 – 25 January.

Clerkenwell Properties Ltd, presumably the owners of Kennett House, the block of shops and offices including Iceland, have applied to the City Council to decide whether or not they need planning permission to convert the offices over the shops to 12 flats. See Planning Application reference 15/00189/B56.

Birmingham City Council has told @RosalindRogers that the woodland area of the Stansfeld Outdoor Centre will not be redeveloped.

@Oxford_Brookes announced that their new Vice-Chncellor is to be Professor Alistair Fitt. He is currently the university’s Pro Vice Chancellor for Research and Knowledge Exchange.

Developers Frontier are mounting a new public exhibition of their proposals for the corner of Latimer Road. It’s on Tuesday 27 January from 4 – 8pm in the St Clement’s Family Centre in Cross Street. See their invitation for more details. No planning application has yet been submitted.

Marsh Lane, Marston was closed for a time on Saturday afternoon following a collision between a car and an ambulance. Three people suffered minor injuries.

Johnson Cleaners is closing on 5 February and moving to 61 Woodstock Road.

My favourite Headington-related tweet of the week:

Active posts on the Headington & Marston e-democracy forum this week:

  • Silver Joggers starting up again
  • The Economist on Oxford/Cambridge
  • Revised Proposals for the Development of Holy Trinity, Headington Quarry
  • Marston Shops
  • London Road “Improvement” Scheme
  • Community Matters
  • Kennett House (block that includes Iceland)
  • Margaret Road zebra crossing work
  • Oxfordshire Transport Strategy
  • Old Marston parish council website
I cover news from the OX3 postcode in Headington and out as far as Barton, Sandhills and Risinghurst (see map). To feed into next week’s summary you can comment on this article, or tweet either with the hashtag #ox3 or @mentioning @TonyOX3.