Controversial plans for 80 homes in Crowland have been passed after an occasionally fractious debate.
Allison Homes has been granted permission to build on the site east of Normanton Road despite South Holland District Council’s Planning Committee being split on the matter.
The plans received 124 letters of objection against the homes to be build around 1.3 metre higher than nearby homes while a petition against it also received 280 signatures.
Crowland resident John Russell spoke against the application at the deciding meeting last night (Wednesday, April 30).
He said that Crowland was ‘over developed and over populated’ and claimed that the marking of the land for housing was from an ‘out of date’ plan.
“It’s common knowledge Crowland has exceeded the number of houses and at a much faster time scale than the plan proposed,” he said. “Plans for nine luxury homes across the road were refused due to flooding yet this plan is putting 80 homes in the same floodzone.
“Plans to increase the height of the homes above ground only redistributes the flood risk on the surrounding properties at a lower level.”
Coun Chris Brewis said: “If it’s that far off the floor then it (the land) isn’t fit to build on.”
Citing his ’49 years and 10 and a half months’ on the planning committee, Coun Brewis accused planning officer Nick Atkinson of talking ‘balderdash’ and cobblers’ that Lincolnshire was ’80 per cent’ in flood zones and said he was ‘absolutely appalled’ by the officer’s interactions with a representative of the applicant during the meeting.
Mr Atkinson told the meeting the new homes would not not be overbearing as it wouldn’t lead to a loss of light or harmful while the meeting was told that a ‘wildlife boundary’ had been included to mitigate that.
“That’s something we don’t usually see,” said Coun Thomas Sneath. ” I think the 1.3 metre height difference will be negated by the considerable distance between the back of one house and the back of the proposed new houses. There will be both gardens plus a wildelife area between.
“I think the officers have done absolutely all they can to make this as attractive as they can given the size of the land and the location.”
Coun Andrew Tennant said: “I wouldn’t say I love this application, it’s very much a bog standard housing estate.
“But is there enough in these bog standard houses to refuse permission?
“There’s one or two positives, it’s very much an in-fill estate and I quite like the design of the open space.
“On paper the density doesn’t look too bad and I’m hoping the wildlife boundary helps.
“I’m going to be a bit cruel. I often don’t have a lot of sympathy for residents in the existing estates.
“If you’ve a road in the estate that’s going straight through a fence, you’ve got a pretty good hint that someone sometime is going to develop the other side of that fence.”
The meeting also heard Anglian Water had initially objected to the application but then changed their mind after further consideration.
The vote to pass the application was split 5-5 leaving committee chair Coun James Avery to deliver a casting vote.
“There’s not much I don’t like about this application and the things that members haven’t liked have been given very comprehensively officer by the officers,” he said while passing it. “I think at times we’re in danger of going down rabbit holes that is beyond the remit of the planning committee.”
He also said that he hoped the ‘very healthy set of developer contributions’ would be honoured.
They include £73,180.80 to the NHS, £475,524 to Lincolnshire County Council for education in the town and £120,000 to Crowland Town Council towards the proposed new sports pavilion.
Speaking in favour of the application at the meeting George Wilkinson, said: “The proposals represent a high quality development which will secure policy compliant affordable housing alongside financial contributions to healthcare, primary education and contributions towards Crowland Parish Council.”
