Shropshire councillors urged to fight unwanted housing applications
Shropshire remains vulnerable to unwanted housing as the county continues to face the challenges of having a lack of land earmarked for new development, a meeting heard.
But Ann Hartley, Shropshire Councillor for Ellesmere, urged councils to continue to fight applications for housing, which have been flooding in across the county.
Councillor Hartley said, despite Shropshire Council currently having a lack of five-year land supply, she was hopeful its Site Allocations and Management of Development (SAMDev) Plan for future house building would soon be rubber stamped.
Speaking at last night's Ellesmere Town Council meeting, she said: "SAMDev is about to go to the minster for approval. We are ready to go through with our housing allocation.
"There are a number of applications going through the back door.
"A lot of the applications turned down by the council go to appeal and the appeal judgments have been very unhelpful.
"I am doing all I can working with planning officers but we are in a vulnerable situation at the moment.
"Council's should put their cases forward as strongly as they can."
Under the government's National Planning Policy Framework, councils with not enough development land set aside for the next five years have to assess planning applications with a presumption in favour of "sustainable development".
Because Shropshire currently has a lack of five-year land supply, it means council planning committees have been voting through housing development applications they are unhappy with for fear of being taken to appeal by developers, losing and making the local authority liable to pay costs.
Earlier this year controversial plans to create 22 homes on land by the Mere in Ellesmere were thrown out by a government planning inspector.
It followed a hearing which was told that the plans could have had serious implications for the town's tourism industry.
An outline planning application has also been submitted to Shropshire Council to create up to 130 homes on land south of The Hawthorns in the town.
The applicants say the scheme, which will include 13 affordable homes, will help the council make up a shortfall of housing land across the county.
Councillor Hartley also told last night's meeting that a planning application featuring a new hotel, restaurant and boating marina by the Wharf is "imminent".
Councillor Alan Clarke, mayor of Ellesmere, said: "Myself, the chamber of commerce, this council and the vast majority of people are most excited at the proposed plans."
