Unconfirmed Planning Minutes: Monday 23rd January 2017

PARISH COUNCIL PLANNING MEETING ON MONDAY 23rd JANUARY 2017 AT
8:30 PM IN THE VILLAGE HALL

Present:, Mr Clive Dalton, Mrs Sue Glasse, Mrs Carol Handley, Ms Kieran O’Callaghan, Mr Steve Dinsdale, Dr Patrick Sinnett-Smith, Dr Colin Russell and, in the Chair, Mr Matt Prince

Helen Fortune, Accent Nene, Nick Green, Saunders Boston, Uzma Ali, South Cambridgeshire District Council, Andrew Fillmore, Planning Officer, South Cambs District Council

1. Apologies for Absence were received and accepted from Ms Alexander.

2. Planning
S/3450/16/FL
Development to provide 10 new affordable homes
Land to the North of Church Street, Great Eversden, known as OSP148

This meeting was convened following “no vote” at the full Parish Council meeting on Monday 9th January 2017.

Accent Nene opened the meeting by trying to address some of the concerns raised at the previous meeting.
Firstly they addressed the timescale of the 2nd application. Accent Nene are received a grant from the Homes and Communities Agency (HCA) to build the homes on OSP148. This grant has to be spent by April 2017, therefore the application needed to be submitted before Christmas in order to guarantee the funding.

Helen Fortune explained that the affordable homes will have rent set at 80% of market value, however this will be capped at housing benefit of £124 per week. Four of the proposed homes will be shared ownership and six will be affordable housing. All of the homes are 2 bed and above. Although 1 bedroom properties were identified in the housing needs survey they are not viable for the future and Accent Nene are looking at long term sustainability. All the properties will be allocated on local connection need first, irrelevant of the applicants banding.

There had been concern at the previous meeting that the sequential tests had not been robust enough. Helen Fortune explained that OSP148 had been an option for 10 years now and there had been 3 opportunities via calls for land. Nick Green went through each of the other sites and explained the reasons as to why they were not feasible.

Accent Nene and South Cambs then took further general questions from the floor, including that the style of the homes was not in keeping with the rest of the Village. Mr Green stated that having viewed all properties in the Village the new homes were exactly in the style of the Village.

The entrance to the site was raised as an issue with traffic speed. Mrs Fortune indicated that Highways had been consulted and were content as the speed limit had been reduced recently to 30 mph so this did not pose an issue.
As no decision could be made at the previous meeting the Council votes on all outcomes as follows:

No Recommendation:
Dr Sinnett-Smith; Dr Russell; Ms O’Callaghan

Object
Dr Sinnett-Smith; Dr Russell; Ms O’Callaghan

Support
Mrs Glasse, Mrs Handley, Mr Dinsdale, Mr Dalton, Mr Prince

By majority 5:3, the Council RESOLVED to support the application.

The Chair closed the meeting at 10:04 pm.