COVENTRY MESSAGE BOARD

Proposals to build 257 homes on open land in Willenhall have come in for some criticism from people living nearby.

Bluemark Projects Limited and Whitefriars Housing Group have drawn up plans 20 apartments, 43 two bedroom homes, 104 with three bedrooms and 90 four bedrooms for the the 25-acre site off Middle Ride.

Eight homes on Field March will be demolished to make way for the new homes with the developers insisting 51 will be classed as affordable.

The site is bounded by woodland, the A46 and the West Coast Mainline and is classed as greenfield, but not green belt.

Comments made so far by neighbouring residents express concerns over the impact on schools, dentists and doctors, and traffic congestion.

While questions have been asked over the suitability of the access points off Middle Ride and St James Lane.

One neighbour added: "Although it has clear room for improvement, this land is currently open space which could be turned into a linear park running between Tollbar and Binley."

Another wrote: "Centro have stated an intention to open a Coventry East Parkway at some stage, and provision should be made for this,

together with a direct link through to the open land on the other side of the railway line with a connection through to Brandon Wood."

A public consultation runs until February 24 although a date for the city's planning committee has yet to set a date to rule on the plans.

Plans for 250 new homes in Willenhall rejected by councillors

An area of land popular with motorcross bike riders and dog walkers will remain intact after plans to build more than 250 new homes were thrown out.

The proposals for the green space off Middle Ride in Willenhall were rejected by the city council’s planning committee by a majority of six votes to one.

Planning officers had recommended councillors approve the plans for two, three and four-bedroom homes and apartments by developers Bluemark Projects.

But issues around school spaces and road safety were enough to convince the planning committee otherwise.

Ward councillor John Mutton said: “It’s all well and good saying there might be some vacancies at the schools in the ward or in neighbouring wards, but how are parents supposed to get their children to two different schools at the same time?

“Willenhall Community School has already been expanded and Corpus Christi is in the process of being expanded to take overflow.

"None of the other schools have got land to expand so it doesn’t matter how much money we get from a 106 agreement if there’s no room to expand.”

He added that to put Claybrook Marsh, which neighbours the proposed site, “in jeopardy would be a disgrace”.

Councillors also unanimously rejected plans for an L-shaped block of 18 apartments in Warwick Street, where the offices for Earlsdon Heating Co currently stand along with a showroom for Mobility Nation.

They sided with residents including Lee Mackey, whose home in Bell Walk would back on to the proposed site, after he complained he would lose sunshine from his garden, the new apartments would be too close to his home and there would be no space left for any necessary maintenance to take place.

He added he was not against the plans as a whole but wished the developer to rethink the layout.

Developers blast Coventry council for blocking 250 new homes

Developers wanting to build more than 250 new homes in Coventry have blasted the decision to kick the plans in to touch.

The city council’s planning committee voted against the proposals for 257 homes on land off Middle Road, Willenhall, as reported in yesterday’s Telegraph.

And developers Bluemark Projects feel that city chiefs are digging a very big hole for themselves.

Nigel Bates, of Bluemark Projects, said: “With the anticipated 15,000 new jobs at Ansty and the Gateway, how will the city ever improve if the city continues to refuse housing development and export its workers and their incomes to neighbouring areas.

“This application would have provided 257 new homes and remove 50 families from the council house waiting list. Coventry really has to decide whether it wants to house its population.”

Developer back with revised plans for 250 new homes in Coventry



New plans to build 250 homes in a popular dog walking area are under consideration.

In April this year, Coventry councillors threw out an application to build the same number of homes off Middle Ride, in Willenhall.

But property developer Bluemark Projects has submitted a second outline planning application request in the hope city councillors will accept its revised proposals this time.

The application would provide 206 private homes, 26 social houses, and 25 intermediate houses – homes that bridge the gap between social housing and private housing.

A block of flats – 1-8 Field March – would have to be demolished to provide access to the new estate.

In the planning statement submitted to Coventry City Council, Bluemark said: “There are clear material considerations in favour of granting planning permission.

“There is a housing need that must be addressed through a range of sites, and the proposal accords with government guidance to approve suitable development without delay. The development will make use of degraded land.”

Residents in the area have mixed views on the proposals.

Lorraine Donnelly, a 46-year-old warehouse worker, lives opposite Middle Ride.

She said: “The schools in this area are already full to capacity, so where would the children go?

“Their plan for an access road is also dangerous, because it would be near a bend in the road.”

Lorraine’s neighbour, Amanda Wickens, agreed: “There isn’t enough room in the schools or at the doctors for the population as things are.

“They will keep submitting the planning application until it gets through.”

But several residents were broadly in favour of the plans.

One man, who did not wish to be named, said: “People need a place to live, we need more houses. Half the people that don’t want it to go ahead will be putting their names down for a house there when it gets built.”

A spokesman for Bluemark said: “Our earlier application for a mix of quality housing was supported by council planning officers but regrettably the committee refused the application.

“We have now re-submitted the application taking account of the comments of the councillors and we have had further discussions with the relevant council departments and other professional bodies to resolve the issues raised.”