Controversial plans to build 90 new homes in a Village in Wiltshire have been turned down by the local authority, although the proposal could still progress.
Housing developers, Gladman Ltd, have proposed plans to construct new homes in Holt, a village situated in Wiltshire, but due to a lack of infrastructure, the council rejected plans on 22nd March.
However, the local authorities decision does not hold much weight as the developers application was not considered within a given timeframe, meaning planning officials were able to bypass the view and hand the case over to a government planning inspector.
According to the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme, the council does not have a five-year housing land supply in place – a calculation of whether there are enough sites to meet planned housing requirements – and so the inspector may well grant permission for the development to make up the required numbers in Wiltshire.
A speaker in opposition of the development, Kate Leroy, said: ‘Holt’s main road is narrow. It’s lined by old cottages.
‘Parked cars make the road single carriageway and encroach on the pavement. Pedestrians are threatened as cars and lorries are inches away.’
As a result of this, she concluded: ‘This village is not a sustainable site for large-scale development, the adverse impact on residence is large.’
The area of land the proposal is potentially due to be built on is outside the neighbourhood plan, which designates which land can be built on.
It would not usually ever be considered for development, but because Wiltshire Council does not have its new housing numbers for the next five years up to the required level, the neighbourhood plan can be overridden by the inspector.
Despite this, Ms Leroy has said there is still hope the plans will be squashed. She cited the example of a decision made by a planning inspector last September where they refused permission for 98 houses to be constructed at Trenham Lane in Trowbridge.
Within that decision, the inspector took issue with the way the housing supply numbers were calculated in Wiltshire and concluded the shortfall should not be given substantive weight.
A spokesperson for the developers, Gladman Ltd, said: ‘The development on the site will not have an unacceptable impact on the design or character of Holt.’
He added the council’s highways officer had not objected to the application.
Image: Andy Newton