Controversial plan to build houses near Telford Town Park boundary gets green light

Strata Housing Services Ltd – a subsidiary of the Wrekin Housing Group (WHG) – applied to build the two semi-detached homes on Aqueduct Lane, Stirchley.

WHG Director of Development, Simon Thompson said the homes would be eco-friendly and sympathetically designed and help meet the “huge demand” for affordable housing.

But Friends of Telford Town Park chairman Chris Pettman said the organisation, which organised the petition, was “extremely disappointed” the Telford and Wrekin Planning Committee voted in favour of the project and called the housing contribution “insignificant”.

Council officers recommended approval. In a report they said the quarter-acre site, opposite the Knightsbridge Crescent junction, “is a relatively flat parcel of land located between a row of traditional terraced properties and the ‘Elms’ playing field which forms part of Telford Town Park”.

Each two-bedroom house would have two parking spaces each, it added.

Mr Thompson said the homes would be built to “passivhaus” standards, meaning they would be highly insulated and well ventilated.

“These homes will not only be well-designed, they will also help to cut carbon emissions and also tackle fuel poverty by ensuring tenants have lower energy bills,” he said.

“There’s a huge demand for affordable housing across Telford and Wrekin. These new homes will help meet the growing need and their design has been carefully considered to complement the existing surroundings.”

But Mr Pettman said: “The approval goes against the council’s own desire to reduce carbon emissions in the borough and will make an insignificant increase to the housing stock.

“We shall be watching the site very carefully when development begins to ensure that there is no landslip into the nature reserve from the rear of the plot.

“Too many green pieces of land are going under concrete currently in Telford.”

Stirchley and Brookside Parish Council was consulted and objected to the application.

The planners’ report said its reasons included “increased traffic and poor parking” and “damage to trees and impact upon ancient hedgerow”.

Parish councillor Greg Sinclair said the applicant and the council had “not made a thorough audit” of traffic, including pedestrians, cyclists and horseriders, on the lane and said the site, at just under 20 metres, was too narrow to provide adequate “vision splay” for emerging vehicles.

Councillor Arnold England – who sits on the parish council and represents Brookside on Telford and Wrekin Council – said traffic was “already somewhat precarious” at the site.

“Delivery and service vehicles and quite possibly emergency vehicles already have quite some difficulty negotiating it,” he said.

“Additional dwellings will exacerbate an already difficult situation.”

But the report said Telford and Wrekin Council’s highways department supported the application, as blueprints showed a shared parking area large enough for cars to turn and exit forwards.

“There is a requirement for the development to provide visibility splays of 33 metres in each direction, which the applicant has shown can be achieved without removal of any roadside hedgerow adjacent to the site,” it says.

“It is acknowledged that Tunnel Cottages attract a lot of on-street parking. The visibility splays take this into account.”

The eight-member committee voted 7-1 in favour. Brookside councillor Jackie Loveridge was alone in opposing it.