Warwick council objects to plans to build 91 new houses

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An objection has been raised by Warwick Town Council to plans to build 91 new houses.

The application submitted to Warwick District Council by Kestrel Properties is for the construction of 91 houses, along with the infrastructure and landscaping at Tournament Fields on the Stratford Road, which has been largely empty for many years.

The development would effectively be an extension of Chase Meadow and has been largely welcomed, but the town council has objected on the grounds that the land should be for employment.

They said: “Loss of employment land should only be permitted if there is a shortage of residential land to meet current housing needs.”

The application is to go before the planning committee on Tuesday, with a recommendation to grant it.

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The field is thought to have been used for jousting tournaments in the middle ages and was also an emergency landing strip for aircraft in World War Two:

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New Warwick housing estate gets green light

A NEW housing estate will now be built in Warwick after planning permission was granted this week.

Tournament Fields business park on the Stratford Road has been largely empty for many years and, despite being designated as employment land, part of it will now be used for housing.

The plans to build 91 houses, with 40 per cent affordable housing, were submitted to Warwick District Council by Kestrel Properties and at a meeting of the planning committee on Tuesday night councillors voted unanimously in favour of it.

Objections had been received, including one from Warwick Town Council, who did not want to see the loss of employment land, but this was dismissed by the planning committee.

Cllr Andrew Mobbs (Con, Kenilworth Park Hill) said: “The district does need housing, does need affordable housing, and I’m delighted for the Chase Meadow Residents Association.

“Well done everybody, this is what this area needs. There are no objections that I think have any weight at all.”

The application was welcomed by the residents association who praised Kestrel Properties for their promise to contribute £70,000 towards the community centre, for which they have desperately been raising funds. There is also a commitment to use some of the land as open space which is in short supply on Chase Meadow.

Cllr Michael Kinson (Con, Warwick West) welcomed the application but wanted assurances the mistakes made at Chase Meadow wouldn’t be repeated.

He said: “Chase Meadow started to be built in 1993 and even now we’re still in talks with Taylor Wimpey to get this finished. It does worry me.

“It’s quite appalling really that here we are still trying to get it sorted. Can we put some provision in this application as some sort of overall thing to make sure it is all sorted?”

Officers said that this application must be considered on its own merits, and that although it was next to Chase Meadow, it had no affiliation with it.

Cllr Bertie Mackay (Ind, Stoneleigh) said: “We should be looking at this positively as residential land with the bonus of the land being used. It seems it is a cut and dried case.”