Ready for battle on controversial housing plans
Residents ‘appalled’ as Government to consider appeals from developers
RESIDENTS are preparing for battle as hundreds of homes could be built in Aughton despite the borough council refusing planning permission.
The Secretary of State is set to oversee appeals over two rejected applications which could see a total of 400 homes built in the village.
The proposals were made by two different developers and were both rejected in 2015 by West Lancashire Borugh Council.
But both applications will now reviewed in hearings at the council’s offices later this month after appeals were lodged in the High Court.
The appeals were registered as a result of the publication of the West Lancashire Borough Council Local Plan which identified both sites for potential housing development.
The largest of the two proposals would see 250 homes built on land off Parrs Lane.
The initial application was rejected because it was not considered to guarantee including enough affordable homes, although Redrow Homes – the firm behind the application – argues that this could have been agreed as a mandatory condition set by the council.
According the appeal documents, 52 houses would classed as affordable, 35% of the total being built.
The second application concerns an adjacent site and involves building a total of 150 homes across two stages.
The developer, Wainhomes, wants to build 50 in the first stage and then a further 100.
Residents in the surrounding area have already registered their unhappiness over the proposals, with various letters of objection sent to the council within days of neighbours being notified.
Among the concerns raised are increased pollution, strain on the road network, schools and health services, and an inappropriate use of the land.
One neighbour even claimed that approving the plans would definitely lead to at least one fatal road collision as a result of the extra traffic.
Another said: “As residents of Aughton for almost 40 years, we are absolutely appalled that Redrow Homes Ltd are even contemplating building what seems like a small village within our village.
“Things like drainage and sewer systems will not be able to cope with the extra demand.
“Floods are already a common sight after heavy downpour on numerous roads in the Town Green area, and that’s now, imagine pipes from 250 more properties feeding into the local network.”
The appeals will be held in a public inquiry lasting four days and starting at 10am on Tuesday, January 30 at the council’s offices on Derby Street, Ormskirk.