1,000 extra homes could be built on ex greenbelt
A CONTROVERSIAL development on former greenbelt land at Eastern Green could include almost an extra thousand homes than thought, the council has admitted.
The site, south of the A45, was allocated for 2,250 houses in the council’s Local Plan after it was removed from the green belt in December 2017.
Hallam Land Management has submitted an outline planning application for up to 2,625 dwellings, a new primary school, retail centre and business units.
But the developer’s transport assessment states it could comprise of 3,495 houses - a staggering 55 per cent increase on what was originally planned.
Highways England has criticised the lack of detail and urged for clarification,adding the impact on roads “has not been adequately assessed”.
When asked, a council spokesman told the Local Democracy Reporting Service the 2,250 allocation was always meant to be a “minimum”.
Calls have now been made by Conservative ward councillors in Woodlands and Bablake asking the Planning Inspector to intervene.
Cllr Peter Male said: “It’s clear the council has no intention of honouring its own Local Plan.
“Make no mistake, once the greenbelt is gone it’s gone forever and cramming an extra 1,000 houses on Eastern Green would be a disaster for this community.
“Residents have been lied to at every stage of this process but this final act of betrayal will take a long time to be forgotten.”
Leader of the opposition Cllr Gary Ridley added: “Residents were given assurances about the scale of the development and their ability to influence the final design.
“That appears to be another broken promise from this failing Labour administration.”
Objections to the plan have been raised by The Environment Agency due to ‘a lack of an acceptable flood risk management assessment’.
The University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust have also raised concern, stating they have “no sufficient resources or space” to cope “without the quality of service [...] dropping.”
The trust is requesting £1.34m to cope with the influx of patients from the development, prior to planning permission.
A council spokesman said all responses will be taken into consideration when making their decision.
She added: “Our Local Plan identified 2,250 new homes at Eastern Green. This was a guide number and it’s true the developer has come back with a plan for more than this.
“The independent inspector that approved our Local Plan was very clear that the number needed to be a minimum number - because we cannot fit all of our required houses inside our own boundary.
“Any additional homes that can work on the Eastern Green site or any other site in the city will reduce reliance on our neighbours to deliver homes for the city.
“But, as with all applications, the applicant will need to clearly demonstrate that the numbers work from a design, infrastructure and housing needs perspective.”