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A controversial plan for 212 riverside flats on land next to the Ashford Designer Outlet has been rejected in dramatic fashion.
East Stour Park, the Quinn Estates project earmarked for a 6.5-acre site off Romney Marsh Road, was thrown out by Ashford Borough Council’s (ABC) planning committee by 15 votes to one.
In front of a packed public gallery, only Cllr Neil Shorter (Con) agreed with the officer’s recommendation to approve – a view met with no support from his colleagues.
Bosses had hoped to build six apartment blocks and 255 car park spaces on the site, which is within Flood Zone 3.
But at the planning committee meeting last Wednesday, William Cummins – a resident of nearby Riversdale Road – started the debate by raising fears about the impact the development would have.
“When the Designer Outlet was planned we were assured the piece of land in question would only ever be used for recreational purposes as it was indeed a flood plain,” he said.
“I’ve had eight flood alerts since Christmas and the area is currently waterlogged and in danger of flooding as we speak.
"Residents are far from convinced that the flood problem will improve with this project being built.
“The proposed development is totally out of keeping.
“All properties are of normal two-storey construction and these flats will blight the whole area.”
Mr Cummins went on to note the loss of privacy due to balconies, a reduction in residents’ TV signal and a lack of parking.
He also said that the increase in traffic and proposed solutions to this would be promote illegal manoeuvres, claiming it was “an accident just waiting to happen”.
Architect Guy Hollaway defended the design and form of the project, stating all of the issues raised by objectors have been mitigated for and addressed in the developer’s reports.
He said: “East Stour Park is close to the train station and is a highly sustainable development.It’s going to take away what is scrubland at the moment and replace it with parkland.
“We’ve been working really closely with the Environment Agency, and they are supporting this scheme while raising no objections.
“We’re moving the bund and increasing the flood capacity in preparation for extreme situations.”
Mr Hollaway also noted the visitor parking spaces and 20 affordable units when none are required by council policy.
"I understand this area does need regeneration but not on the scale of this proposal" - Cllr Jenny Webb
If built, the site would have been accessed by a new junction off Romney Marsh Road, with a second junction acting as an exit only point onto Norman Road.
But Ashford mayor, Cllr Jenny Webb (Con) – who represents the Norman ward – “strongly opposed” the application, which featured apartment blocks ranging from five to seven storeys.
She said: “I never thought I would ever have the need to stand before you all and defend my objections against a development within the green corridor and Flood Zone 3.
“Norman ward and its residents have already given up more than a fair share of green space with developments in Norman Road of B&Q and the Gallagher Retail Park, both of which still flood during bouts of heavy rain.
“I understand this area does need regeneration but not on the scale of this proposal.
"It needs the green corridor to be protected as an important part of the landscape and its wildlife.
“This is a greenfield site – it is not required to meet the housing needs of Ashford.
“It is not a windfall site and the sequential test showed insufficient due diligence to research alternative sites.”
Following these speeches, a surprisingly speedy discussion took place.
Noting the world’s recent streak of freak weather patterns and the prominence of UK floods this winter, the first planning committee member to speak – Cllr Bernard Heyes (Con) – immediately motioned to refuse the application.
He said: “In my view these five- and seven-storey blocks have very little architectural merit at all.
“Looking at the housing mix – 102 one-bedroom and 110 two-bedroom flats – don’t we have an excessive amount of flats in the town already?
“I sincerely believe we would be doing the residents of Ashford a disfavour if we approve this so I propose to decline the officer’s recommendation for approval.”
Labour councillor Diccon Spain said he “initially felt quite conflicted as it has a lot of positive aspects, but I keep coming back to the fact it’s on a flood plain and in the middle of the green corridor”.
He added: “My particular criticism is it interferes with the function of the green corridor, in that it’s supposed to provide habitat and the ability for wildlife to move.”
"I feel we’re getting a little emotional..."
Cllr Spain then seconded the motion to refuse.
Many councillors – including Cllr Linda Harman (Ash Ind), Cllr Liz Wright (Green) and Noel Ovenden (Ash Ind) – echoed these feelings regarding flooding and the green corridor.
Ashford’s Labour leader Cllr Brendan Chilton also focused on the traffic impact the development would have.
The only dissenting voice in the council chamber was Cllr Shorter, the portfolio holder for planning and development. He said that while many of the objections “are based on observations, many are based on fear”.
He added: “What we have to do as a planning committee is judge the plan in front of us on the merits and refuse or approve.
“I feel we’re getting a little emotional – pretty much every point based on traffic, flooding and the look has been raised as a topic within the report.
“External experts have addressed these points and have said the application in front of us is OK.
“It’s not going to cause any problems for the environment or residents in the area – the evidence in this report says it will actually improve the flooding situation there.”
No one seconded his motion to permit the project, while 15 people supported Cllrs Heyes and Spain in refusing it.
Only Cllr Shorter opposed the refusal.
"We will now go away and reflect on this decision..."
As part of the scheme, a large tract of land close to Asda was originally due to be offered to the council on a peppercorn rate by the applicant.
Quinn Estates’ chairman Mark Quinn initially suggested “it could be used for outdoor events as a piece of green infrastructure, like Mote Park is used for concerts in Maidstone”.
But the wetland park concept was taken off the table and became part of the flood and ecology mitigation.
The land was not mentioned during the meeting on the back of an officer’s recommendation that “ABC has rejected this in favour of alternative green corridor mitigation and members are therefore advised to give it no weight”.
Following last week’s meeting, Quinn Estates released a statement to KentOnline's sister title the Kentish Express in response to the decision.
The company’s development director Ben Geering said: “We are disappointed at the decision by members to go against the recommendation of officers and refuse our application for East Stour Park.
“For the past 18 months we have worked closely with Ashford Borough Council and listened to the views of both the public and other statutory consultees to shape the final proposals put before the committee, including significant mitigation in response to the feedback we received.
“From the outset, our vision for East Stour Park has been to create an exceptionally designed new development, in a highly sustainable location that provides for and invests in the community.
“Our final proposals received no objections from statutory consultees, including the Environment Agency and provided additional protection against flooding through improved storage.
“We will now go away and reflect on this decision and comments made by the planning committee regarding our application before deciding what our next steps should be.”
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