Sikhs Appeal In Temple Site Row

[TheSuperbell]

OXFORD’S Sikh community has accused the city council of not doing enough to help them find a new place of worship as they face eviction from the house they have been using as a temple.

Sikhs have been ordered to stop worshipping at a semi-detached house in Cherwell Drive, Marston, which they have been using for more than three years.

In January, the council refused an application for retrospective planning permission to change the use of building from a place of residence to a place of worship.

The Sikhs were also ordered to demolish a single-storey extension to the building, which is used as a congregation room, as it was put up without planning consent.

The Sikhs have lodged an appeal to the Government’s Planning Inspectorate again-st the enforcement notices.

And community leaders said they feared being left without anywhere to pray, because a six-month search for a temple site had drawn a blank.

Pargan Singh, 49, who lives in nearby Cherwell Drive, said: “We’re racing against time to find somewhere new.

“We have done whatever we can to acquire a temple for the Sikh community and people are getting frantic.

“There’s a lot of concern that we will lose the temple and have nowhere to congregate and pray. I just can’t understand why the council can’t help the Sikhs.

“I know in many other areas the land is donated by the council free of charge or some councils will charge about 10 per cent of the market value.

“We have been in temporary accommodation for more than 30 years before and are in danger of starting right from the beginning again.”

The Sikhs need a building big enough for about 150 people to meet.

Members of the community have been visiting estate agents every week and earlier this year were close to buying the Blue Mile pub, in Littlemore, which closed last year, but could not get the use of the building changed.

They were also interested in buying the Northway Centre, in Dora Carr Close, but earlier this month the council voted to demolish the office block, as it was deemed too expensive to bring back into community use.

Nearly 100 Marston residents signed a petition opposing an application to give the Cherwell Drive temple retrospective planning permission. And planning officers recommended refusal of the application because of parking problems and noise.

A council spokesman said: “While we wait for the result of the appeal we will continue to work with the community to find them alternative accommodation.”

http://www.thisisoxfordshire.co.uk/news/4513085.Sikhs_appeal_in_temple_site_row/?FORM=ZZNR4