I REPLY belatedly to the letter from R W Mathew (January 19). I have only lived in Bere Alston since 2001, and since that time there has been development on several ?brown sites? together with extensions to existing properties. The size of the village is increasing. The problem with any large site, such as the proposed building for Pentille Road, is that all construction traffic is likely to approach the village via Denham Bridge Road. As you may know, this is a rather busy but small road, not designed for heavy vehicular traffic. It has also been closed several times this year already due to large vehicles breaking down/accidents. Once the village is reached, Bedford Street is again rather narrow, and cars are often parked along one side, so the construction traffic is likely to approach Pentille Road via The Down. Although The Down has street lighting, there are no footpaths, and it is very narrow in parts. The school bus/coach also picks up in The Down and access to the playing fields/recreation park is via The Down. I feel Mr Mathew is wrong in calling myself and fellow villagers NIMBYs. We have a right to be concerned that heavy construction traffic may block our access routes in and out of the village. It is likely to drive past our front doors creating increased noise, increased pollution, and making the roads unsafe for children and adults to walk. Previous proposals to build on another site in the village were rejected after an inquiry. It was accepted that the approach roads were inadequate to support the increased traffic flow. J A Bellchambers Upcott House The Down, Bere Alston FOR the second time, Councillor Matthew failed in his letter (February 2) to address the issue we raised on January 12, namely the question of his handling of the planning committee meeting of December 8. This matter is now the subject of a formal complaint, along with associated issues concerning the council?s planning department. As we have learned that an action group comparable to ours in Northlew has recently referred a complaint against West Devon Borough Council on matters virtually identical to ours to the Ombudsman, we consider it is inappropriate for us to comment further at this points. Geoffrey M Stowell Mike Benson Bere Alston Action Group