Agenda item

Construct 240 Dwellings including estate roads, public open space and drainage

Land at end of Braemar Avenue, Eastwood, Nottinghamshire

Construct 240 Dwellings including Estate Roads, Public Open Space and Drainage

Land at end of Braemar Avenue, Eastwood, Nottinghamshire

This application was brought to the Committee upon the request of Councillor M Handley and Councillor M Radulovic MBE.

There was a late item comprised of very detailed written answers from the Environmental Health Officer regarding the levels of contamination on the site, risks to construction workers, the bentonite curtain wall and the vent trench.

Matt Smith, the applicant, Richard Dale, objecting, Ron Jones, objecting, Councillor Linsey Ellis, Ward Member, Councillor M Brown, Ward Member and Councillor Milan Radulovic MBE, Ward Member, addressed the Committee prior to the general debate.

There was a long debate, which began with the noting of grave concerns regarding the contamination of the site, the possibility of a public inquiry, the results of the hydrorock report, the unknown nature of what was accepted into the tip and the likelihood that the tip had not been correctly capped.  It was noted that permitted development rights were to be removed from the proposed properties.  It was also noted that the tip site was larger than previously thought.  There was concern at the suggestion that a bentonite wall would be economically unfeasible and that the development would cause an unacceptable level of pollution.

Debate moved on to the depth to which services were to be built and whether this would breach coal seams, the possibility of gas migration impacting on the amenity of existing residents and how any failures at the construction stage could have catastrophic consequences.  It was stated that this site was not allocated in the Local Plan.

It was also noted that there was one narrow entrance and exit to the site and this was felt to be inadequate for the large number of homes that were proposed. 

It was proposed by Councillor M Handley and seconded by Councillor R D Willimott that the vote be recorded.  The votes were cast as follows:

            RESOLVED that planning permission be refused with the precise wording of the refusal to be delegated to the Chair of the Planning Committee in conjunction with the Head of Planning and Economic Development.

Reasons

Due to the close proximity of the application site to a former landfill site containing unknown levels of contamination, the proposal is considered to provide insufficient protection for future residents of the development, adversely impacting on the character of the area. Furthermore, there is insufficient evidence the mitigation measures proposed are adequate enough to ensure the development of the land will not pose a risk to human health and safety. As such, the proposal is considered to be contrary to Policy 19 of the Part 2 Local Plan 2019 and Part 15 - Conserving and enhancing the natural environment of the National Plan Policy Framework (NPPF) 2019.