by Alan QuickTHERE was disquiet and joy in the Crediton area this week - joy after plans for a housing development for 120 dwellings was refused, but disquiet after another plan for 40 homes was approved.

Mid Devon District Council planners, at their meeting on March 21, approved the outline plan for the erection of up to 40 dwellings with associated access, parking, open space, landscaping and supporting infrastructure (17/01090/MOUT) by Ben Lee on land and buildings at NGR 281938 100425 (adjacent Brookdale, Threshers), Hollacombe.

This was subject to conditions and the signing of a Section 106 agreement.

CHAPEL DOWNS

At the same meeting, the outline application for the erection of up to 120 dwellings, public open space, vehicular access and associated infrastructure (17/01511/MOUT) by Barrett David Wilson Homes at land at NGR 282065 100892 (Chapel Downs Farm), North of Queen Elizabeth Drive, Barnstaple Cross, was refused.

Previously there had been a plan for 60 dwellings on the Threshers site but this was revised.

35 PER CENT AFFORDABLE

Conditions imposed for the 40 homes plan included:

1 Affordable Housing: 35 per cent affordable housing on site (13 units); 2 Education: a contribution of £10,000 towards early years provision; 3 Air Quality: a contribution of £119, 718 to contribute towards the community car share schemes and clubs for Crediton - phase two, for the provision of bike storage facilities at Crediton railway station and to contribute towards the subsidised bus scheme for Crediton Town Centre; 4 Public Open Space: a financial contribution of £32,535 towards improvements to the open space and play area adjoining Queen Elizabeth Drive, Crediton Hamlets; 5 Safeguarding of the land and a scheme of works to deliver the car park and 6, monitoring and legal costs.

Objectors to the plan raised issues related to flooding and local traffic, floodplain water storage concerns and run-off from the site, lack of walking and cycling routes, no public amenity space, air quality, noise issues, concerns for wildlife and lack of open space for children at town primary schools.

Both Crediton Town Council and Crediton Hamlets Parish Council had objected to the plan.

CHAPEL DOWNS FARM

The plan for 120 dwellings on 7.22 hectares of agricultural land was refused because the application site is outside the current settlement limit boundaries of Crediton and is in the open countryside and is not currently allocated for development.

Neither is the site proposed to be allocated for housing within the Councils Local Plan Review 2013 -2033.

Highways and visual impact reasons were also given for refusal as well as loss of grade two agricultural land in a rural setting, topography and character and appearance of the countryside.

In the opinion of the Local Planning Authority the development would result in harm to the setting of the Grade II listed Chapel Downs Farmhouse.

The agricultural field is considered to form part of the setting of the listed building, and the proposed scheme will alter the character and appearance of the setting of the listed building given the intrusion of built development at a raised level within the setting of the heritage asset.

Although the harm is considered to be less than substantial in National Planning Policy Framework terms, in addition to the other identified harmful impacts of the scheme it is not considered that the public benefit arising from the scheme would outweigh the identified harm to the designated heritage asset and therefore the proposal is considered to be in conflict with a number of policies.

In the opinion of the Local Planning Authority it had not been demonstrated that development can be accommodated on the site without resulting in unacceptable harm to the amenity of occupiers of neighbouring properties.

The archaeological geophysical survey undertaken has indicated the presence of a prehistoric or Romano-British enclosure within the proposed development site.

Objections were raised by Crediton Town Council and Sandford Parish Council.

Sandford Parish Council said the issues included access to Higher Road, local traffic issues, lack of infrastructure, air quality, light pollution and sustainability.

Crediton Hamlets Parish Council said it was neutral in respect of the application but expressed a number of concerns including vehicle access, light pollution, increased traffic, inadequate local roads, the need for more bungalows and the increase in pressure on local services such as local schools, doctors, safe play areas and public transport provision.

It also raised concerns about traffic pinch-points at Forches Cross and the bottom of Jockey Hill.

PEDLARSPOOL

It is expected that the plan for Pedlarspool (Creedy Bridge), which is likely to be in the region of up to 320 dwellings and a new Crediton Rugby Club, etc, will be submitted within the next few months.

The news that the application was on its way was announced at Sandford Parish Meeting, held earlier this month.

• If speculation is correct and Crediton can expect to see more plans for housing development come forward in 2018, do you think this will be a good thing or a bad thing for the town and area?

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