Planners

It is a difficult task to balance the needs of a modern day society while trying to protect the environment of an historic city. Our planners have to consider the needs of the citizens of today. I have no doubt that the many people who attend the soccer centre benefiting from its facilities would not agree with Mr Mead.

I know that our planners guard our heritage jealously. However, as much as we would wish to guard our heritage, we cannot allow it to enslave us. There will be occasions when we need to compromise. Our planning department carry out a thankless task with a great degree of success, if is not done always to perfection it is certainly not because of a lack of caring.

Mr Mead's comment that the relevant councillors and our planners are not fit for purpose was most unkind and uncalled for. I would remind him of the saying that a critic is a person who knows the road but cannot drive the car. It is obvious that Mr Mead has no conception of the difficulties of driving this particular vehicle.

Ray Gibbon, Witton Gilbert.

PETER Robinson (HAS, Aug 25) must understand that his building site on the corner of Skinnergate and Bondgate in Darlington is in a conservation area.

Reclaimed bricks were specified for his new building because that was the construction of the building he demolished without planning permission (we could prosecute him). The building was originally rendered, so we are going back to what was there before he demolished the building.

Far from having no experience of building construction, Darlington council's planning department has a huge wealth of experience to call on.

Martyn Kendall, Conservation Officer, Darlington Borough Council.