Housing bid at old school site deferred A
BID to convert a former King’s School site into homes has been deferred for a second time with the destruction of a war memorial a sticking point.
Cheshire East Council’s strategic planning board originally deferred the application for land off Cumberland Street, Macclesfield, in January of this year.
And it decided to do so again, following a four and a half hour meeting, over concerns about the proposal’s housing mix and the retention of the school’s cricket pavilion.
Had the application, originally submitted in March 2019, been approved in its current form, the school’s cricket pavilion - which also serves as a war memorial - would have been demolished to make way for 115 homes including ‘later living’ apartments.
Councillor Ashley Farrall, who proposed deferment, justified the move by saying: “The War Memorials Trust stated this is a rare type of war memorial. The pavilion itself is the memorial.
“I am also very concerned that we could create a gated ghost town as no one can afford to live there.”
Plans from developer Hillcrest Homes had included the retention of the site’s memorial gates, and the transference of the commemorative lintel to King’s School’s new Prestbury site, which it moved into over the summer.
Despite these moves, and the inclusion of a memorial garden at the new development, councillors felt uneasy cautious to approve demolition of the pavilion, which has ‘listed building by curtilage’ status.
“I find it very hard to sit here and condemn a pavilion which is [important] in the town,” said Cllr Phil Williams.
He added: “We are talking about something which is very trusted and imperative for the people of Macclesfield. I don’t think we should dismiss that.”
Members also took issue with the affordable housing provision in the scheme, with five units earmarked as such, when the council’s own planning policy recommended 35 for a 115-dwelling development.
Agent Avison Young said this was due to the plan being a ‘complex scheme’, with the conversion of the old school building and library into dwellings being costly. In turn, that reduced the level of affordable housing it could provide and still make the development viable, argued Avison’s Jon Suckley.
Ultimately, councillors felt that the inclusion of detached homes was ‘strange’ and did not use the ‘limited space’ efficiently enough, so asked Hillcrest to review parts of the scheme to include more terraced housing, in the hope of creating more affordable units.
The meeting of the planning board, on Wednesday, December 9, was the final one of 2020, so the revised plans will be discussed in the new year.