Anxious wait for residents on whether 180 new homes will be built in Taunton

Taunton residents will have to wait a little longer to find out whether 180 new homes could be built on the northern edge of their town.

Gladman Developments applied to build the homes on the Pyrland Farm site on Cheddon Road - four times the amount of homes the local authority originally intended to be constructed there.

Somerset West and Taunton Council's planning committee discussed the plans at its first ever meeting in Taunton on Thursday afternoon (May 30).

But after numerous issues were raised - especially regarding traffic and the impact on the nearby Quantock Hills - councillors voted to defer a decision until more information became available.

The council - and its Taunton Deane predecessor - has a mixed record with Gladman, having fought three appeals against the developer's plans in the last 12 months.

Up to 180 homes could be built if plans are approved

The council threw in the towel in July 2018 against plans to build 250 homes in Rockwell Green near Wellington, claiming its reasons for turning down the plans were "not maintainable".

It fared better in November, when the developer withdrew an appeal over 95 homes in Wiveliscombe, and subsequently won an appeal against 200 homes in Creech St Michael.

The developer confirmed that 25 per cent of the new homes would be affordable, and would make £2.7M available for education and transport projects through the community infrastructure levy - of which £675,000 would go directly to the local parishes.

Rebecca Robinson - whose comments were read aloud on her behalf - said the urbanisation of the edge of Taunton was "reaching shameful limits", and that only a maximum of 45 homes should be built there.

She added: "This entire application contradicts the council's garden town vision. Approving it creates a precedent for developers to ignore policy and disrespect our local landscape."

Land off Cheddon Road in Taunton was originally earmarked for 45 homes

Mike Ginger, from the Taunton Area Cycling Campaign (TACC), said this development needed to be considered in the context of other housebuilding in the area - including the ongoing Nerrols Drive development to the east.

He said: "We have concerns that additional traffic from this and the David Wilson Homes development will work against efforts to promote walking and cycling to schools in the area."

Stephen Pattison described the plans as "a gross over-development" and warned that granting permission would "cause harm to the integrity of this council."

Councillor Libby Lisgo said Cheddon Road "can only be described as a country lane".

She went on to say: "Emergency vehicles are already having difficulty at key times of the day getting up and down Dorchester Road.

"The combined effect of these two developments is nothing short of potentially catastrophic."

Councillor Gwilym Wren (Independent, Milverton and District) raised concerns about the impact the development would have on the Quantock Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB), whose border lies just to the north of the site.

Aerial view of the Cheddob Road site. (Image: Google)

He said: "I would really like to have seen some photos from the top of the Quantock Hills looking back towards Taunton. We'd have a much better understanding of how this is going to look within the setting of the hills."

Councillor Marcia Hill, said this was "a mess waiting to happen" in light of the planned Staplegrove development and the planned regeneration of the Woolaway homes to the south.

She said: "We need to see the whole picture. I'm not happy with this at all. I can't see any improvements on that road - I can see it getting worse - and it's just over-development as far as I'm concerned."

Councillor Ian Aldridge said he was troubled about the loss of agricultural land when other sites in Taunton were still to be developed.

He said: "What concerns me is that we're talking about national policies requiring us to build homes - but we also have to feed people as well."

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Councillor Norman Cavill added: "Since when did protecting wildlife, biodiversity and ecology be improved by digging up the land and putting down housing and pavements?

"We are losing a great deal of faith. We've got to stand up somewhere and this is a good place to stand up."

Concerns were also raised about the level of consultation Gladman had carried out with neighbouring residents before the meeting, with councillor Sue Buller saying it had "not been adequate or effective".

In light of these concerns, committee chairman Simon Coles said a decision should be postponed until more information became available.

He said: "My own view is there are a great many questions today which have yet to be answered properly."

The committee voted unanimously to defer a decision on the plans, but did not indicate when it expected the application to come before its members again.