DESPITE objections from residents, a veto from elected planners and an impassioned plea from a borough councillor, the green light has been given to a controversial plan for 153 new homes in Thurrock, though it failed to win the approval of the one local man on the decision-making committee.
At today’s Thurrock Thames Gateway Development Corporation planning committee plans for the new homes behind the Bannatynes Fitness Centre in Howard Road, Chafford Hundred, approval was granted for the scheme – which has been 18 months in the making.
Architect Alan Camp, speaking for developers Stephen Howard Homes, spoke up for the plan, which features a mix of flats, terraced houses, studio apartments and a new purpose-built doctor’s surgery, saying: “What you have before you is the culmination of 18 months’ work and consultation and we have taken on board people’s concerns.”
However, his words cut no ice with Chafford Hundred South councillor Tunde Ojetola who said the scheme wasn’t wanted.
“Chafford Hundred is already over-saturated and is now jam-packed. Originally Chafford Hundred was planned for 2,500 dwellings, now we’ve already got 8,000.
“Our three primary schools and one secondary school are over-subscribed, we’ve had residents demonstrating in the streets about it but there is simply no space to build more classrooms.
“As for traffic, you’ve only got to be in Chafford Hundred at a holiday or festival time, or when there’s a problem on the motorway, and it’s grid-locked. You simply can’t move in Chafford Hundred. The place is jam-packed, please don’t pour more people into Chafford Hundred.”
However, senior planning officer Nigel Hebden made light of his objections, saying that Thurrock Council education officers hadn’t flagged up potential problems and the scheme had been approved by the highways authorities.
There was no discussion on the views of Thurrock Council’s planning committee, who opposed the plan for a number of reasons including quality of design, noise problems and that residents in the new development would have an ‘unsatisfactory living environment’ - though member Sunny Crouch did express her disapproval of the studio apartments in the plan which she described as ‘bedsits.’
When it came to a vote, Mrs Crouch was one of two of the unelected decision-makers, the other being local man Grahame Thomas, who didn’t vote for the scheme and developers are now expected to press ahead with the development on a site once earmarked for a casino.
The scheme proposes five blocks within the site together with 16 houses arranged around two landscaped courtyards. In total it will include 137 flats.
One of the blocks will include a doctors’ surgery with three consulting rooms which the developers say will meet the needs of between 3,000 and 4,000 people in the vicinity.
Among conditions laid down for the developers are that they will pay just short of £300,000 towards education, £153,000 for highways improvements, £76,500 towards local community facilities and make a contribution to local sports facilities.
Thirty per cent of the homes will also have to be ‘affordable housing.’
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