A long-awaited decision on whether to allow a developer to build 70 homes on a field north of Weston-Super-Mare will be decided on Wednesday (December 14). In the year since it was submitted, 149 people have objected to the planning application for the development. It will finally go to North Somerset Council’s planning committee this week.
Local developers Mead Realisations said: “The proposal will provide a high quality sustainable residential development and associated infrastructure, with significant areas of public open space. The dwellings have been arranged to provide views between plots of the site’s rural edge.
"A strong and cohesive community element has been integrated into the plan by providing communal green areas for people to socialise, and enjoy the surroundings.”
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The houses will be a mix of detached, semi-detached, and terraced alongside two blocks of flats. Thirty per cent will be affordable housing, in line with local policies. The plans also include a public open space, a community orchard, and a pond which would play a role in drainage.
The developers claim: “The site would act as a natural extension to the village of Worle.” But some locals have raised worries about urban sprawl.
One local who lodged an objection online said: “Once that field is built on, the next field will be built on, and the next and so on. Too much green land has already gone and it is time it stopped”
Others were worried about the impact on traffic, with the only road access to the housing estate being from Queensway. One person said: “The traffic is already so bad in this area, that [people] are unable to safely ride their bikes to school or shops.
“Kewstoke Road and Norton Lane are incredibly congested and dangerous, particularly in the Summer months, the road infrastructure simply cannot support an increase of this kind. We have had some near misses when walking the dog with people speeding.”
One local suggested it would be safer for the houses to be accessed from Anson Road. Only seven people lodged comments in support of the application, mainly citing a need for housing in the area. One person said: “As someone who is house hunting this side of the town, there is a lack of properties that become available on the Worle side.
“There are schools on the hillside that are within walking distance and I would be very interested in purchasing a brand new property within walking distance of my son’s school and the Worle amenities,” they added.
The plans will be discussed in a public meeting of the planning committee in Weston-Super-Mare Town Hall at 2.30pm on Wednesday December 14.
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