News | Local plan


downsmail.co.uk Inspector ‘ignored’ people -MP


TORY MP Helen Grant has hit back at the initial findings of a government inspector reviewing Maidstone Council’s draft Local Plan.


She says he appears not to have listened to the many complaints about congestion in the borough. The MP for Maidstone and


Weald has now written to Robert Mellor to express her serious con- cern. She has told him: “The interim findings, which set the tone for the inspector’s final report, seemingly ignore the concerns that were raised, not only by me but also the highways authority and a number of other stakeholders. Congestion is a particular issue for the South of Maidstone where the draft plan proposes a large number of houses will be built in coming years, in ad- dition to those already in progress.” She also criticised the inspector’s conclusion that an extension of the Sutton Road bus lane would help to mitigate traffic travelling into the town centre and her disappoint- ment that Mr Mellor had not felt the issue of poor air quality suffi-


MP Helen Grant


cient to limit or halt further devel- opment in the area. Mrs Grant also used the opportu-


nity to again stress the case for a Leeds-Langley Bypass, adding: “I feel the people of Maidstone de- serve the right for investigations to be made into a possible relief road,


which would divert a significant amount of traffic away from this area of the town.” Mrs Grant closed her letter by im- ploring the inspector to listen to the views of local people. She stated: “As I indicated in my presentation to you previously, the most common concern raised with me as the MP for the area is the rate, scale and impact of housing developments around the county town. I do not feel that your interim report has recognised the severity of these concerns, especially with regard to congestion. I, therefore, very much hope your final report can recommend mitigation, and in doing so will recognise the objec- tions raised by local people.” Neighbouring MP Helen Whately, the member for Faver- sham and Mid Kent, has also writ- ten to the inspector, drawing attention to the possibility of devel- opment of Woodcut Farm near junction 8 of the M20 near Bearsted.


It is now subject to an appeal against refusal last summer. She said: “I am disappointed that Woodcut Farm remains under con- sideration as a site suitable for of- fice development. “Woodcut Farm has previously


been refused planning permission because of the impact on the land- scape. “The site is detached from the built-up area, so employees would likely access it by car, adding to the congestion and air quality issues.” Leeds Castle chief executive Sir


David Steel has also voiced his grave concerns about the gateway to the historic tourist attraction being built over. Local people fear if one develop-


ment is allowed, it will open the floodgates to similar applications. Leeds borough councillor Gill


Fort said: “There will be a major traffic impact on our village aswell as Langley and Sutton Valence, to name but two.”


‘We’ll own the future’ Factors affecting numbers


THE final report for the inspector who presided over the Local Plan inquiry will return ownership of Maidstone’s future back to the town, according to the borough council’s head of strategic planning. Cllr David Burton, who repre-


sents Yalding, said Robert Mellor’s observations on Maidstone Bor- ough Council’s position on land supply for development has further strengthened the scheme going for- ward. The authority will also have more


clout in saying ‘no’ to unwelcome development plans, he said. Mr Mellor suggested the author-


ity, which failed to meet a near 900 home a year programme in the first five years of the Local Plan, absorbs the backlog over the next decade in- stead of five years. According to the Planning Advi-


sory Service (PAS), the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) requires local councils in Britain to “identify and keep” a deliverable land supply for house-building. Cllr Burton (pictured) said: “The interim report gives us control of planning in the future, instead of the developers. In particular, it has put us in a strong position over the five year land supply. “It was exciting news that the in- spector did trim the overall num- bers a bit and that also strengthens that five year land supply issue. “It gives us the chance to say no


to unwanted applications and it be- comes a planning-led system rather than a developer-led system.”


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In January, the inspector issued a 35-page interim report which largely vindicates MBC’s housing policy of more than 18,500 houses to be built by 2031. The inspector has suggested a reduction of 900 to the total.


THE Local Plan inspector considered areas of outstanding natural beauty, flood risks and transport in his deliberations on whether to reduce housing numbers. This was one argu-


ment put forward by Maidstone and the Weald MP Helen Grant in her submission to the recent inquiry. Mr Mellor stated that


in Maidstone, the brown- field land available for redevelopment falls well short of the assessed housing needs. He said while the town’s external growthwas paused for several years in


the early part of this century, that cannot be sustained if it is to make an ap- propriate contribution to housing needs. He states: “They (the constraints) do not preclude all housing develop-


ment or create a fixed capacity for the borough. “Rather it is necessary to assess locations individually and to apply judg-


Cllr Burton added: “I suspect in


the final report he (the inspector) will suggest some modifications and there are somewe have agreed in outline aswewent along.” The council will consider the in-


terim findings and stage a public consultation before going before the full council in early summer. On securing land for develop-


ment, the PAS states: “To help with boosting the supply of housing, the National Planning Policy Frame- work requires local planning au- thorities to identify and keep up-to-date a deliverable five year housing land supply. “Without this, even recently- adopted planning policies for the supply of housing will be consid- ered out of date.”


Maidstone Weald February 2017


ments as to the impact of development and whether any significant ad- verse impacts can be adequately mitigated.”


Yalding site is ‘put on hold’


THE Sygenta site at Yalding is one site the Local Plan inspector has rec- ommended should not go ahead. The parish council has indicated it


would be unwise to designate the area for anything while there are flooding issues to be resolved. Local people are said to be de- lighted that the inspector took on board their view. Yalding borough councillor David


Burton, the council’s planning chief, was pleased overall with the interim report. He said that when calculating housing needs, a number of matters were considered, including housing prices and delivery rates. Cllr Burton said the authority is


now much closer to adopting the Local Plan and is looking forward to receiving the inspector’s final report.


To view the inspector’s interim findings, click onto http://tinyurl.com/glh5pu


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