Roger Tym and Partners, who were the consultants drafted in by EDDC to check the facts and figures over the highly contentious Local Development Framework planning strategy, have told the council it does not need more than 10,800 houses between 2011 and 2031. This figure, translated into the plan period - 2006-2026 is 9,792 houses. The consultants warn that if more houses are built than recommended, there is a danger that there will not be enough jobs to go around. But in a controversial move, EDDC has agreed to build 4,500 houses within its boundary for Exeter, which must [...]
The consultation for the plan, which sets out plans for building in the district until 2026, will end on 16 January. It will be the result of a review of the plans over the summer - prompted by widespread rejection of the document last year, including around 2000 objections, as well as condemnation from Natural England and Devon County Council. It is not yet clear what the final proposals will be in the revised version of the LDF, however, as a panel member, I have not seen any evidence to suggest proposals will change very much, albeit distributed differently. All comments collected from this[...]
The appeal is being regarded as a test case as developers, Blue Cedar Homes, are challenging East Devon District Council’s policy on the way it calculates its housing land supply. East Devon splits the district in half, rather than the supply being calculated across the district as a whole, as many other authorities do. Several residents spoke at the inquiry, as did a representative from West Hill Residents Association and Cllr Tony Howard. I was unable to make representations as my parents live near to the land in question, which means I have a prejudicial interest. If the [...]
The parish council unanimously rejected the application, based on the many concerns expressed by local people at the meeting and via EDDC’s website. Myself and Roger Giles were in attendance, along with parish councillors. I spoke of my own concerns about the application, as did Roger. The application will now be determined by East Devon District Council. Below is my submission in full, to EDDC: ............................................................................... This application is in my ward and my preliminary view, based on the information presently available,[...]
At last week’s full council meeting, the plan to extend the panel was voted through by a majority vote. Cllr Roger Giles likened the proposal to extending a jury just prior to the verdict taking place. I asked what the justification was. The answer was apparently related to ‘inclusivity’ and the chief executive, Mark Williams, argued that the panel would have further discussions after the consultation ended. The three new panel members are David Key (former LDF Panel chairman who helped produce the previous controversial plan - Con), David Atkins (Con) and [...]
The recommendation to LDF Panel members was to approve a consultation period starting on Monday 21 November through to Monday 16 January. I argued that launching a consultation period as people were preparing for Christmas would not be effective and would result in far fewer responses as people’s minds turned to Christmas preparations rather than commenting on strategic planning documents. I proposed an extension to the period by two weeks further into January. I was outvoted by two votes to nine.
Around 25 Feniton residents packed out Ottery St Mary Town Council’s chamber and several spoke against the plans, which are on five hectares of grade two agricultural land. Reasons for not supporting the application included: - Feniton was due to receive only a five per cent growth until 2026, equating to around 35 houses - The sewage system is at capacity - Water run-off from the field is likely to worsen the flooding problem that already exists in the village - The field is outside Feniton’s built up area boundary and approval could prompt other developers to argue for approval [...]
The application (11/2172/MFUL) went ‘live’ on Monday. It proposes 11 open market dwellings and eight affordable houses. The developer is arguing that the application should be approved under new Government reforms, the National Planning Policy Framework. Under East Devon District Council’s Local Development Framework process Tipton St John should get a five percent growth of around 12 houses between 2006 and 2026. It is the second large-scale application for the village. A public inquiry appeal has been lodged by Devonshire Homes against a refusal for 56 [...]
We are a town council based in East Devon representing Ottery St Mary and several nearby villages. Our parish population is around 8,000 and we are surrounded by beautiful, but largely undesignated countryside. Tourism is a key economic driver in Ottery St Mary, as it is in the rest of the district. The countryside and walking pursuits are the main attractions for the tourist industry here. We support the need for new housing, particularly affordable housing locally, and have made representations to the Local Development Framework process in this respect, however we believe [...]
My speech was as follows: “There are over 3000 households on the housing register in East Devon, waiting for homes to become available. Over 3000 houses in East Devon are empty. Around 25000 homes in Devon and Cornwall are reported to be empty. In East Devon, over 3000 houses are classed as empty. Almost 2500 of that number are second homes or holiday lets that are empty for more than six months of the year. That is one and a half times the size of Ottery St Mary, in East Devon alone. We are told that there is a housing crisis and many more houses must be built. Empty [...]
It appears it is the first large-scale application of many. At least two other developers are looking to build in the village, with proposals of over 300 houses. However, just 35 houses have been allocated to Feniton in the Local Development Framework process, as a village of around 700 homes currently. Residents have launched a campaign against the proposals. Half the land in this application falls into the Ottery St Mary Rural Ward so as the district councillor, I will be a key consultee on the application, which will be debated on Monday 17 October, by Ottery St Mary Town [...]