View of the site of the proposed development from Towngate East

Disappointed to see that the Larkfleet planning application for 240 homes off Towngate East is set to return to the District Council’s Development Control Committee for a decision to be made with sadly few improvements following last month’s meeting.

At the earlier meeting, the committee deferred the application to give time for further investigation and the consideration of additional conditions to be attached to any permission. This was in response to a number of issues raised by members of the committee, the Town Council, District councillors, and local residents.

The council officers at the District Council have now completed this work and written a report to be considered by the Development Control Committee.

My suggestion for a condition requiring construction traffic to be restricted to Northfield Road looks like it may be partially addressed by a condition requiring a construction management plan, with Larkfleet indicating they may be able to keep at least the bulk of construction traffic on Northfield Road.

There however remains no requirement for the pavement on Northfield Road to link to that at the roundabout. Apparently the Peterborough Road commercial development will provide a link through to the west but I suspect that would not be as convenient for anyone walking/cycling towards Langtoft.

Another of my suggestions, that the proposed pavement on Towngate East should be connected to the existing pavement at the junction with Lancaster Way has also been rejected. The County Council bizarrely suggest there is “no highways reason” to require this despite the lack of this meaning anyone heading towards the nursery etc. on Towngate East will have to cross the road three times close to the busy roundabout.

As the NHS had surprisingly not requested money to pay for improvements to the doctors surgery they have been asked to confirm that is the case. It is said that the currently under construction extension will provide a significant increase in capacity, accommodating population increases in the next 5-10 years. As they do not have specific plans for future expansion they are not able to request money under current rules.

Another issue that has been raised is the road access from Towngate East. In the new report, the County Council have repeated their view that the access is acceptable.

This application will be now again considered at the committee’s meeting on 15 November. It appears it may not be possible for the public to address the committee on this occasion. Planning officers, having assessed the application against both national and local planning policies, are recommending it is approved.

Whilst I’m pleased that some improvements have been made to the suggested planning conditions, and several will require Larkfleet to submit more details for further approval should they get permission, it is disappointing there has been no movement on several issues. I hope that the members of the committee will look to go further and so help to ensure that this development, if it is set to get permission, is the best it can be for both current and future residents.