News
Homes plan could put KCC pledge to the test
A PLAN to build another 250 homes along the Sutton Road corridor is expected to be submitted to Maidstone Council shortly. It will be the fifth large housing
development proposed for the area after approval for 600 homes at Lan- gleyPark; 186 homes north of Sutton Road and 100 homeswest of Bicknor Road. All three schemes are now under construction. InAugust, Countryside Properties
also hosted an exhibition outlining its plan to build 850 homes at Lang- leyPark Farm, south of SuttonRoad, which has been allocated for hous- ing in Maidstone Council’s draft local plan. The latest plan for Bicknor Green
– off Gore Court Road, Otham – comes from Bellway Homes, which has completed its online public con- sultation and looks set to submit an outline application for 250 homes, even though the draft local plan al- locates just 190 for the land. The 14-hectare proposal could test
KCC’s pledge to object to any more sizeable developments along the Sutton Road corridor that could im- pact the A229/A274 Wheatsheaf junction south of Maidstone.
Shed blaze
FIREMEN had to use breathing ap- paratus as they fought a shed and fence fire in Otham. The crew, who were called to White Horse Lane at just before 11am, stayed on the scene for nearly an hour damping down the blaze on October 6.
As reported in Downs Mail last month, strategic planner Brendan Wright said: “Our position as high- ways authority is that no further de- velopment beyond that committed within the planning system can be accommodated on these routes.” Langley Parish Council chairman
CherylTaylor-Maggio said that with the population of her parish set to double, “enough is enough”. She said:“We are not Nimbys,we recognise new homes are needed,
AT least one member of Maidstone Council has been caught ordering online shopping during a meeting, it has been claimed. Cllr Clive English issued a warn- ing after a complaint was made by a member of public who watched online a meeting of the planning
but Maidstone Council seems intent on ignoring residents to pursue a housing need that satisfies its bank balance, rather than actual demand.” Cllr Taylor-Maggio (left) ex- pressed concern not just for Langley, but surrounding parishes such as Boughton Monchelsea, Otham and Sutton Valence, which she said would be “impacted massively” by the extra housing that would shortly come on the market. She added: “It is only as the devel- opments take shape that one can ap- preciate the scale of these estates and the speed at which they are being delivered and the impact they will have on our already over-subscribed hospital, surgeries and roads. Our services are unable to cope with our current population.” Bellway Homes says its scheme to
the north of Bicknor Wood and south of White Horse Lane, Otham will provide market and affordable homes, with one and two-bedroom apartments and up to five-bedroom homes around a village green.
Councillor ‘surfing’ in meeting
committee he chairs. He said: “At least one member of this committee was observed surf- ing, shopping and general things inappropriate for this meeting. “We would not want to be chal- lenged on a decision through not taking due care during a meeting.”
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Town focus on heritage
MAIDSTONE is on a mission to make more of its heritage. Research carried out by the Royal Society of Arts placed the county town 20th out of 326 destinations for the quality of its heritage – but only in 275th place for activities re- lating to it. Council leader FranWilson said: “Considering the importance of the visitor economy to the borough, this is a major lost opportunity to use one of our biggest assets.” The council’s heritage, tourism
and leisure department recently launched its Destination Manage- ment Plan – the blueprint for mar- keting the borough to visitors in the future – and Cllr Wilson said she hoped this was the start of a new era of progress. Officers from the RSA are due to
visit Maidstone in a few weeks’ time and Cllr Wilson said she hoped this too would give the council some ideas as to how it could better exploit its heritage as- sets.
Beddy-byes
HUNDREDS of people across the area have a couple in Allington to thank for a good night’s sleep. But after 34 years in business, Liz
and Chris Gammon are looking forward to taking it easy. The couple, who run the Chris Gammon Bed Centre, will retire as the lease on their shop at Mid Kent Shopping Centre in Castle Road comes to an end in October.
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Call for views on borough plan
THElatest consultation on the Maid- stone Borough Local Plan – which will set out how Maidstone will de- velop up to 2031 – is underway. Residents are
being asked for their views on is- sues from poten- tial housing sites and proposed employment site locations, to can- didate sites for gypsies and trav-
ellers and the removal of the pro- posed park and ride site at Linton Crossroads. A proposal for a plan- ning policy for care homes is also in- cluded. Cllr David Burton (pictured), chairman of the strategic planning, sustainability and transport commit- tee, said: “The local plan will show how we will meet the needs of the
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people of Maidstone until 2031, and howwe will protect our countryside and open spaces. I urge everyone to take part in the consultation.” The objectively-assessed housing
need for the borough – the number of homes needed for the population from 2011-2031 – is 18,560 additional homes. Of these, 2,341 have already been built, and a further 5,508 are in the pipeline. For the local plan to be approved
by the planning inspector, it must show how the borough will meet as much of the housing need as possi- ble, within the borough’s con- straints. Additional housing sites are being proposed in the built-up area of Maidstone and at some of the bor- ough’s larger rural villages to help meet this need. The proposed open space policies
will help make sure that valuable open space is delivered as part of
Maidstone East November 2015
new housing developments. Cllr Burton said: “Everyone will
have a chance to have their say on a proposed policy for public open spaces, the allocation of specific sites for use as public open space, and the council’s approach to protecting our highly-valued local landscapes.” The consultation document and supporting background material can be found at thewebsite
www.maid-
stone.gov.uk/consultation. Com- ments can be made on the website, or sent to
ldf@maidstone.gov.uk, or Spatial PolicyTeam, Maidstone Bor- ough Council, Maidstone House, King Street, Maidstone ME15 6JQ. The deadline for comments is 5pm
on Friday, October 30. The document will be available to
view at all libraries in the borough, and at the Gateway on King Street from9amuntil 5.30pm on Mondays, and until 4.30pm Tuesday to Friday.
The council will consider all of the
issues raised during the consultation with the aim of publishing a full, re- vised version of the local plan for further public consultation early next year. The plan will then be sub- mitted to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Govern- ment. An independent planning in- spector will be appointed by the Secretary of State to conduct an “ex- amination in public” towards the end of 2016, before the plan is finally adopted the following year. Cllr Burton said: “Once the plan is
in place we will be able to defend against inappropriate applications for further development. It’s impor- tant that we achieve the 2016 dead- line, otherwise we run the risk of needing to extend the plan period, and the possibility of losing control of the process to central govern- ment.”
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