An outline application to build 70 new homes in a north Cumbrian village has been approved.
Carlisle City Council’s planning panel met at the Civic Centre yesterday, Friday, February 25, and granted approval in principle for the development on land off Steeles Bank near Wetheral.
Although submitted in outline with further details to be revealed, early plans are to build about 70 homes on the development.
City council officers recommended the application for approval but a number of residents turned up to the meeting, concerned about its scale and flood action measures.
Case officer Suzanne Osbourne pointed out in her report that the site is allocated for development in the Carlisle Local Plan. She also stressed that the application has been made in outline and is simply requesting permission for the principle of development.
And neither residents nor the parish council were in opposition to the idea of new homes in Wetheral. But resident Brian Thompson said: “We do see serious issues with the development envisaged in this outline proposal.
“With regard to density and over-intensification, it’s important to note that this site is only a portion of the much larger site allocated in the Local Plan for up to 60 dwellings, a significant portion of the original site is being developed separately as Prior’s Garth.
“If this site is developed using the same plot size and density as Prior’s Garth, it would accommodate 30, or at most 40 dwellings.”
Concerns were also raised about a lack of parking provision and “historic surface water and related flooding issues”.
Mr Thompson said: “The Wetheral system is a Victorian-era combined foul and surface water pipeline and it’s all just six inches of pipe suitable for perhaps 100 homes, Wetheral now has close to 600, as more and more houses have been built, sewage outflows and related flooding at the bottleneck junctions continue to become larger and more frequent.”
United Utilities and Cumbria County Council as the lead flood authority have made no objection to the proposed housing development.
The application was approved unanimously despite the concerns but the panel agreed to consider a cap on the number of dwellings when the proposal comes back to planning.
Cllr Stephen Higgs, ward councillor and member of the parish council in the area said: “We all acknowledge that the village has to evolve in order to survive but this application, if approved, will result in harm to the village and we’re asking you to help us prevent that.
“It would put pressure on already overstretched school provision, pressure on health care provision and further pressure on a drainage system that already fails to cope on frequent occasions.”
Cllr Ruth Alcroft proposed that the officers’ recommendations be accepted and planning permission is approved for the site.
A vote was called and planning permission was approved with all but one in favour.
