Plans for housing at village rejected
PUBLIC OPPOSED SCHEME
Local democracy reporter COUNCIL bosses have thrown out proposals for up to 50 new houses on the outskirts of a County Durham village.
Plans for the development, on land east of Greenfields, in Salters Lane, Trimdon, generated plenty of public opposition, with 47 out of 49 representations on the application calling for it to be scrapped.
Durham County Council’s own planning department was also opposed, claiming it would damage both the Trimdon conservation area and the surrounding countryside.
According to a report prepared for councillors: “In this instance it is not considered that the public benefits identified, including the boost to housing land supply, provision of affordable housing, direct and indirect economic benefits, net gains in biodiversity and improvements to the public rights of way network would be sufficient to overcome the less than substantial harm to the setting of the conservation area which arises from the proposal for built development to the northern boundary, directly adjacent to the conservation area which would further erode the historic core.” The view was shared by all but one member of the council’s South and West Area Planning Committee, who sided with officers to reject the scheme.
Only Trimdon councillor Peter Brookes disagreed, arguing that extra homes in the village would be a positive, and backed the plans.
“We’re in desperate need of housing,” he said.
“In terms of the wellbeing of the community, we do need housing.”
Despite the application requesting permission to build up to 50 homes, plans showed just 40. Anton Lang, named as the agent on the application, spoke at the meeting and claimed the upper limit had been included in case it was later decided to increase the affordable housing allocation on the site. PLANNING REPORT