Developers ask council to remove public art condition

THE company behind a Loughborough development has submitted an application to the council asking it to remove a condition that requires it to make a provision of public art.

David Wilson Homes appeared in the Echo in June this year after Charnwood Borough Council’s planning committee agreed to remove a public art contribution obligation attached to the development being built on land at 95 Nottingham Road, Barrow-upon-Soar.

The Echo reported that it was to provide £28,400 towards public art as part of a section 106 agreement - these are often referred to as ‘developer contributions’ to the community.

And now David Wilson Homes has submitted an application to the council asking it to remove a condition relating to the provision of pub- lic art attached to planning permission it has to build on land west of Allendale Road, Loughborough.

However, the borough council say “no funding to the area will be lost” if this condition is removed.

A council spokesperson said: “National planning policy has changed and no longer supports requests for sums of money to contribute to public art as part of Section 106 agreements. We therefore no longer have a policy for public art.

“For this particular application the developer had not agreed to allocate a specific amount of money to the provision of public art, they had simply agreed that some form of art would be placed on the development. Therefore, no funding to the area will be lost as a result of the condition being removed.

“Unless the application is called in by ward councillors to be heard at the plans committee, this application can be decided by officers under delegated powers.”

The David Wilson Homes website states the Loughborough development, named The Chimes, will feature 98 three, four and five bedroom homes.

A spokesperson for David Wilson Homes East Midlands said: “As part of our development, The Chimes, we will be contributing more than £190,000 to Loughborough via the Section 106 agreement, which will benefit both new and existing residents and support local infrastructure.

“The Charnwood Local Plan 2011 to 2028 Core Strategy, which was published in November 2015, no longer requires the provision of public art on developments, so we have submitted an application requesting the removal of this condition. Comments in relation to this application can be submitted via Charnwood Borough Council’s website.”

• The application (P/17/2021/2) can be found at: portal.charnwood.gov.uk