Homes plan sparks flood concerns

Proposals for an 18-home development on the outskirts of Southwell have been criticised by the town council’s planning committee because of concerns over flooding and the size of the proposed homes.

They objected to the plans to build to the north and south of The Vineries on Kirklington Road.

It is the first phase of a proposed 78-home development on land around Kirklington Road and Lower Kirklington Road.

If the 18 homes are approved by Newark and Sherwood District Council, the area to the north would have seven five-bedroom and two four-bedroom houses.

Lower-cost houses to the south would be two three-bedroom and five two-bedroom properties.

A mini-roundabout would be built at the junction of Kirklington Road and Lower Kirklington Road and there would be private parking for residents.

The town council’s planning committee unanimously objected to the scheme.

Chairman Mr David Martin said he opposed it because the lower-cost housing was not spread throughout the development.

“It is [also] against the Neighbourhood Plan policy, where we ask that the plan is dealt with as a single development or a single planning application,” said Mr Martin.

Mr Martin was also critical of the proposed water drainage for the development.

“It is important the surface water flow path is dealt with correctly and there is no surface water run-off,” he said.

“They are proposing infiltration to the ground underneath but that’s not going to help because of the clay problems we have in Southwell.

“The proposal for water disposal is into the watercourse and that is totally unacceptable.”

'Here we have two ghettoes'

Planning committee member Mr Peter Scorer said the housing mix did not comply with those set out in the district council’s guidelines or in Southwell’s neighbourhood plan.

The town’s neighbourhood plan, adopted in October, 2016, recommends that 40% of the homes should have one or two bedrooms.

Mr Scorer said: “It also doesn’t comply with the district council’s policy on affordable housing, which requires it to be spread throughout the development.

“Here we have two ghettoes — one north and one south.

“There is no sense of place, no central area and no play park.”

Committee member Mr Andy Gregory said there would be few public transport links to the development.

“Very few bus routes go round there,” he said.

“People will just be driving into the town, clogging up spaces, purely because there is no provision on that side of the town.”

The applicants, Mr and Mrs Keith and Katharine Maxey, of Kirklington, said in their design and access statement there was no record of flooding on the proposed sites and there would be no risk to upstream or downstream properties.

They said tests should be carried out to see if water would infiltrate the ground, which is made up of clay and loamy soil.

When contacted by the Advertiser, the applicants declined to comment further.