I made a point of visiting Haywards Heath town library during my lunch break on Monday. Then I saw it, a vision, someone actually asking ordinary people's opinions on the new proposals for the redevelopment of Mid Sussex. Only, of course, they were not from the council but, as it turned out, the Mid Sussex Times. There was no information at all about Burgess Hill on the display boards, only Haywards Heath. There was a handout with a list of objectives for Haywards Heath.

OBJECTIVE 1: "To promote the development of a linear town structure and consolidate future development around three distinctive nodes, with appropriate height and scale."

No, I didn't understand it either. Each town has seven objectives, all straight from the flipchart of a blue-shirted braces-wearing media type. Obtaining a copy of the Burgess Hill handout from our library, I learn that our second objective is: "To develop an accessible, legible and welcoming town centre that is well connected with key activity generators such as the station and the Victoria Business Park." More jargon.

Haywards Heath gets off lightly. Locals there had advanced notice of their proposals and, when they found blocks of flats were to be demolished, raised strong objections. That was Christmas. Looking at the map of Haywards Heath, it seems that there are not any real substantial changes, only a new station, new Clair Hall and extension to the Orchards. The map seems to be full of newly planted trees, as they extend the pavement in the Broadway, making parking more difficult and no doubt creating more work for our newly appointed revenue-raising traffic wardens.

Needless to say, the planners weren't going to make the same mistake with Burgess Hill, and locals only found out their homes were threatened when they saw a map which obliterated where they lived. To really get a taste of what is proposed one must download or read in the library the full Burgess Hill planning document.

One determination is to rid the town of its independent cinema, making way for a money-spinning multiplex. The Orion is said to be "a small but popular cinema...which has recently converted to two screens. It does not however, show the most recent films." What utter rubbish! It converted to two screens, not recently, but in 1991, and it does show the most up-to-date films. Last year's planning report was worse, describing it as "a flea pit", a phrase I hadn't heard used about the Orion since the late 70s or early 80s. Where do they get their information from? Perhaps these "key stakeholders", as they call those actually asked for their input - not plebs like us - are so out-of-touch that they forfeit the right to have their opinions taken seriously.

If you want a laugh, just look at the artists impressions, also printed in the Middy, of a future Burgess Hill. Queen Elizabeth Avenue looks like The Mall; the road is six lanes wide with little traffic and symmetrically planted trees. Why? In the sketch of the town centre a man in a bowler hat rides a unicycle while juggling. So in addition to bohemian hangouts such as Covent Garden and the Pompidou Centre now add Burgess Hill town centre. Somehow, the large hotel pictured seems rather optimistic, as I don't think we are ever going to be a tourist destination.

How is all the redevelopment going to be paid for? Well, obviously Thornfield Properties expects to make a return with sky-high rents from shops. Expect an end to independent shops. Only the bland multiples will be able to afford the charges. Then there are the Yuppy flats. A map showing the expected height of buildings generally shows them to be 4 storeys high. Room for plenty of commuters to live, who use Burgess Hill as only a bed at night and don't input anything into our community.

Is this really what we want? Only a couple of years ago councillors claimed they wanted Burgess Hill to become a market town once again. So how do they justify all this? People are going to have to decide whether we stay a relatively small town, in which people tend to have a history of living in the local area. Or a large town, sucking in people from not just over the country but also the world, with the possibility of racial ghettos and associated social problems. Do you think that I exaggerate? Then just look at Crawley.