Judicial review call over go-ahead for homes at garage site
Calls have been made for a judicial review to be held into the decision by planners to give the go-ahead to a new housing development.
Outline planning permission was given for nine homes on the site of Fairview Garage, a former petrol station in Guilsfield, near Welshpool, at a planning meeting on October 1
Guilsfield Community Council thought that the application was on hold due to the Covid-19 crisis and had not given Powys County Council (PCC) an opinion on the scheme.
Guilsfield Community Council met remotely on Monday, October 19, and discussed the issue.
Council chairman, Councillor Ian Harrison said: “We were notified that PCC had approved the Fairview Garage development even though we had been led to believe the process was on hold.
“Councillor Jones notified us the evening before the planning committee by which time it was much too late.
“We were surprised and very unhappy that it had gone ahead.”
Councillor Harrison explained that the only people who can appeal against a decision are applicants.
“We have a number of options including putting in a complaint to the planning inspector, or maybe more than that,” said Councillor Harrison.
Powys County Councillor for Guilsfield, David Jones, who spoke against the application at the planning committee, said: “What concerns me is that the site has two and a half times as many dwellings as the Local Development Plan suggests is suitable for Powys.
'Ignored'
“To my mind it is so far beyond the pale it should not have been approved.”
He believed a judicial review could be the way forward as planning officers had “ignored their own guidelines” about the number of dwellings to fit on a site.
Councillor Glynne Turner, pointed out highways safety concerns because of the chicane system around the nearby primary school, which could be made worse with more people parking in the area.
Councillor Turner, proposed going ahead with forming a small committee to look into how to take the decision to a judicial review.
The council agreed unanimously.
At the planning meeting on October 1 a councillor asked whether the community council had an opinion on the plans?
Guilslfield Council said they were had been told they had more time to consider the application because of Covid-19 but that planning officer left the authority in May.
They had not been able to discuss the application, as meetings had been cancelled from March due to the pandemic.
Lead professional planning officer Peter Morris said that he understood the difficulties but they had been given several months and there was only so long the authority could wait.
