Agenda item

Erection of 44 residential dwellings with associated highway and landscaping infrastructure.

The application was brought before members of the committee for determination at the request of Councillor Paul Longton.

A site visit took place to enable members to understand the proposal beyond the plans submitted and the photos taken by the case officer.

An update sheet with additional information was published on the council’s website, this information only having become available after the original agenda was published. The committee considered the update sheet, which contained additional representations from the local education authority and a third party, references to additional plans that had been received and an update to conditions.

Dave Shepherd spoke in objection to the application on behalf of local residents.

Chris Robinson spoke in objection to the application.

Lawrence Barker spoke in objection to the application.

Wyre Borough Councillor for Mount Ward, Paul Longton, spoke in objection to the application.

Soulla Rose, the agent, spoke in favour of the application.

Several members of the committee noted their issues with the application, admitting that though the application would provide 100% affordable housing, it fell short of its expectations. Other points of discussion included:

·         Accessibility requirements for elderly and disabled residents

·         The height of the levelling

·         Mix of houses

·         Flooding and drainage problems

·         Greater number of houses proposed than what was allocated

·         Lack of Green Infrastructure (GI)

·         Not in keeping with the area

The Head of Planning Services clarified a number of points to members. On the lack of GI, he stated that the GI that is normally required is not being provided on site but is being provided elsewhere and an off-site financial contribution had been proposed by the applicant. On the number of houses, he explained that the allocated number of houses was a minimum as per government planning policy, and as long as other planning requirements and policies were being met, a larger number of houses could be acceptable. He also told members that the site was a site allocation detailed in the Local Plan and had been on the market. He also told members that a review of S106 agreements in respect of the occupancy criteria for affordable social rented housing was ongoing.

Following discussion, it was proposed by Cllr Le Marinel and seconded by Cllr O’Neill that the application be refused contrary to the recommendation for the following reasons:

1. The proposed development of 44 dwellings, which was far in excess of the site capacity figure of 25 dwellings identified in the Wyre Local Plan, would result in an over intensive and cramped form of development that was out of keeping with the local area and would result in increased risk of flooding on neighbouring land. This visual and flood risk harm would be further exacerbated by the proposed raising of land levels. The development would therefore be in conflict with Wyre Local Plan Policies CDMP2, CDMP3 and SA1/1.
2.  The lack of any on-site green infrastructure including children’s play area, with contributions instead being proposed to be made towards Memorial Park which was poorly accessible from the site in terms of distance and means of access for future residents (particularly children) on foot, would fail to promote the health and wellbeing of future residents and would not achieve the overarching Wyre Local Plan objectives of delivering sustainable communities. This would be contrary to policies SP2, SP8, HP9 and SA1/1 of the Wyre Local Plan.