HOW depressing to see the front page of the Gazette (May 15), revealing details of the application to build 800 new houses at Newlands.

The picture was pretty but showed only a handful of houses when in reality it will be wall-to-wall concrete.

Goodbye countryside. Should we apply for city status now?

All the objections raised against previous mass developments remain – congestion, over-development, lack of infrastructure, destruction of the environment – except with ever greater importance.

A short section of dual carriageway, the western side of which ends in a clearly lethal two to one lane bottleneck at Carrington Bridge, is not going to help.

Another 1,000-plus cars will return the road to semi-permanent gridlock.

If nothing else, common sense should prevail – this area is full.

Yes, Malvern is currently a nice place to live but it won't be if building like this continues.

This is an area of outstanding natural beauty, but this so called protection seems only to attract ever more determined developers.

Satisfying everyone's right to live in a beautiful place succeeds only in destroying the beauty.

Come on council, protect Malvern!

R Wilson

Malvern