Local residents are being urged to have their say on the proposed changes to the Local Plan before the six week-consultation ends next week.
Cheshire East Council has been working on the formation of a new Local Plan for some time which will shape development across the Borough up to 2030.
It is obliged by Government to formulate a Plan that identifies how many houses are going to be built and how much land will be given over for employment use. As part of this process they have had to identify which parcels of land should be used, which has generated much debate over the past couple of years.
The focus of the consultation is on the changes the Council now proposes to the plan it originally submitted to the Secretary of State in May 2014. This includes additional and amended strategic site allocations.
The key points are:
● Revisions to reflect a revised housing requirement of 36,000 homes (up from 27,500 and now including accommodation for older people);
● Increased employment land requirement, up from 300 hectares to 380ha, to reflect the stronger anticipated jobs growth rate of 0.7 per cent per annum (up from the original anticipated rate of 0.4 per cent);
● Revised spatial distribution of development, incorporating both the uplift in overall development and the need for additional growth in the northern towns;
● Increase in the amount of safeguarded land within green-belt areas to 200ha;
● Replacement of the new green belt between Crewe and Nantwich with a revised strategic green-gap policy.
The revised Local Plan proposes that 900 homes be provided in Wilmslow along with 10 ha of Employment land - an increase from 400 homes and 8 ha in the submitted plan.
It is proposed to maintain the allocation at Royal London for mixed use but to include land west of Alderley Road within the developable area. This will now provide for around 175 homes and 5 ha of employment land.
Further housing allocations are now proposed at Little Staneylands and Heathfield Farm. The former will accommodate around 150 homes on land off Stanneylands Road, situated adjacent to the Dean Valley. Heathfield Farm at Dean Row Road is located on the eastern edge of the town and will accommodate around 150 homes. The remainder of this land; extending to some 9 ha towards Cross Lane will be safeguarded for future development after the end of the plan period.
A further area of safeguarded Land is proposed between Upcast Lane and Cumber Lane, this extends to approximately 15 ha, and it is proposed once again to allocate land west off the A34 close to Wilmslow High School for employment use.
The revised plan proposes that 2,200 homes be provided in Handforth along with 22 ha of Employment land. The proposals are for 1650 homes and 12 ha of employment land at the North Cheshire Growth Village, located off the A34 Bypass and bordered to the north by the A555 (Manchester Airport Eastern Link Road), and 250 homes on land at Sagars Road. 14ha of land south of the Growth Village is also proposed for safeguarding – for development after 2030.
Councillor Ainsley Arnold, who is now overseeing the Local Plan process, said: "The Local Plan Strategy is the Council's most important tool for shaping development in Cheshire East up to 2030.
"The very positive views expressed by the Planning Inspector have enabled the Council to make amendments to our Local Plan with confidence and publish these for public consultation. This includes a comprehensive suite of development sites to accommodate the larger scale of growth now expected and planned for in the Borough."
The Council is due to submit the Local Plan Strategy, with any amendments, to the Planning Inspector in the summer (2016).
Consultation documents can be accessed online and on Local Plan Consultation Portal. A hard copy of the Local Plan documents can also be viewed at Wilmslow Library.
Responses should be made using the online consultation portal, by email or by post: Spatial Planning, Cheshire East Council, Westfields, c/o Municipal Buildings, Earle Street, Crewe CW1 2BJ.
The deadline for online submission is 5pm on Tuesday 19th April.
Photo: The front cover of the Local Plan Strategy Proposed Changes.
