VILLAGERS hoping to site a post office and community shop partly underground at Exbourne were frustrated this week by the decision by West Devon councillors to reject the radical design. The planning and licensing committee meeting in Okehampton on Tuesday refused the application on the grounds that it would be ?an intrusive form of development to the detriment of the character and appearance of the conservation area?. The application had been deferred from a meeting on November 8, to allow officers to explore an alternative design, but this was rejected. The proposal before councillors on Tuesday was to erect a single storey, part subterranean glass fronted structure cut into the roadside bank opposite the Red Lion pub. Exbourne Post Office and shop closed four years ago and since then a group of volunteers has been working to provide a new facility for the village, which would incorporate a post office, shop and cafe area. Steve Blakeman advocating the scheme, quoted from a letter by West Devon Council?s own regeneration officer who said he was ?particularly impressed with the contribution of volunteers and the environmental sensitivity of the design.? He said local farmers were also in support of the application as it would provide a retail outlet in the village for them to sell their produce. Speaking against the proposal Dr John Stoneman said he was concerned about the increase in traffic the shop would lead to and the inappropriate design in a conservation area. He said the survey carried out as part of the production of a parish plan found only around a quarter of respondents supported the proposed scheme unreservedly. Cllr Roger Mathew said: ?The principle of the project is a good one. You have a very dedicated committee who have worked up a proposal over a considerable amount of time. ?You want to get a village shop in Exbourne and I don?t think there are many people who object to that, but it is in a conservation area and it is the view of the conservation officer that the design doesn?t cut it.? He therefore felt, with some regret, he had to reject the application, because the current design did not represent the best that could possibly be achieved. Cllr Dilwyn Hughes said he supported the application. The villagers of Exbourne should have their own post office, as currently the nearest one was in Hatherleigh or North Tawton, he said. The committee members voted to refuse the application.
