Martin Chapman, of Westfield Road, Bishop's Stortford, Herts, writes: Catching sight of an artist's impression of a possible future view of South Sands in the Gazette, I could hardly believe that a planning application for a multistorey car park right across the valley was even being considered. Reading on, though, it became apparent that the picture illustrates some architect's idea of a fitting replacement for the present tasteful Tides Reach Hotel and its grounds. You can only assume that the aim is to transplant bits of the Thames waterfront into the natural beauty of the South Hams, maybe throw in a skyscraper or two and at last bring this unspoiled stretch of the Devon coastline into line with the rest of modern matchbox design. For goodness' sake, please can we trust the planning authorities to stamp firmly on this unbelievable, facile, ­rubbish concept without a ­second thought? The people who ran our ­holiday let 16 years ago put in plastic windows. They were required by the authorities to take them out again and restore them to wooden ones, as they could be seen from the water. Fair enough perhaps to ­preserve the essential character of an old fisherman's cottage, even at a distance. We must trust our planners to be equally firm on this proposal for such a glaring monstrosity in desecration of our naturally beautiful coastline. Surely an alert too for English Heritage and our Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.