Homes plan to go ahead despite fields objections
A 460-HOME development at Talbot Green that attracted hundreds of objections in an online petition has been given planning permission.
Members of Rhondda Cynon Taf Council’s planning committee voted 4-2 in favour of granting consent, subject to the signing of a Section 106 agreement.
The 50-acre residential development at Cefn yr Hendy will be built by Talbot Green Developments (TGDL), a joint venture between Cromwell Property Group and Scarborough International Properties (SIPL).
TGDL is the overall development and project manager for the site on behalf of the Welsh Government. The granting of planning consent follows two years of work with Rhondda Cynon Taf Concil to develop the proposals.
The planning consent covers the development of 460 new homes, ranging from one-bed apartments to five-bedroom houses, as part of a co-ordinated masterplan that is intended to ensure the provision of public open space and play areas as well as retaining the mature landscape.
The consent also includes permission for a local community retail development, a site for a primary school and enhancements to the local infrastructure.
The residential scheme is part of a broader project being developed by TGDL, which includes the development of a new £200m Talbot Green town centre with a new retail and leisure offer as part of a broader regeneration.
Initial proposals for the new town centre, which received outline planning permission in December 2014, cover the creation of more than 300,000 sq ft of new retail, leisure and commercial accommodation, new civic and public realm, improved public transport interchanges and 1,800 car-parking spaces.
Infrastructure works for the first phase of the scheme were completed in January.
Sainsbury’s is already confirmed as the scheme’s anchor tenant with plans for a 116,000 sq ft store, and TGDL is in pre-let discussions with a range of retailers.
Property agents Lunson Mitchenall and EJ Hales are to secure a diverse mix of retailers and leisure operators to meet the needs of the expanding population.
Earlier this year an online petition calling on the council to stop the planning application received hundreds of signatures.
The petition, launched by Residents of Cefn Yr Hendy, said: “These fields at Cefn Yr Hendy are used heavily for recreational use by dog walkers and young families alike and are some of the very few green fields we have left.
“The existing residents will be severely overlooked by this proposal and will lose their privacy.”