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Campaigners have warned that plans for new settlements in the borough of Maidstone which could see 7,000 homes eventually built and have significant steps forward, could end in failure.
On Tuesday, council members pressed ahead with proposals for a 5,000 home garden community on countryside to the east of Lenham, known as Heathlands and one in Lidsing, north of the M2, where 2,000 homes are expected, as well as development in other towns and villages.
The plans are part of Maidstone Borough Council’s (MBC) Local Plan Review (LPR) and were laid out in the preferred approaches document which was approved for consultation by the Strategic Planning and Infrastructure (SPI) committee on Tuesday.
It comes despite campaigners continuing to question the validity of Heathlands, for which MBC is the master developer, and sharp criticism from other councillors.
In the meeting committee members themselves admitted the document needs improving, with one likening it to a “rusty wagon” which needs “a lot more TLC”.
The council is also desperately trying to make sure it can lock in its current housing target, to prevent the figures being hiked by thousands under new Government targets, which MBC leader Martin Cox warns could result in starting the LPR process again.
The LPR acts as a blueprint for building in the borough, setting out where residential and employment sites should go up until 2037 and coming into effect in 2022, when if it goes through all the necessary hurdles, it will be adopted.
It acts as a top up to the current local plan approved in 2017, which only plans until 2031.
Thanks to an earlier rise in housing targets, MBC needs to provide an additional 1,236 homes a year from 2022, up from 883.
An extra 5,790 residential units will need to be allocated to cover this, 2,700 of which would be provided by the new settlements within the LPR period.
The consultation documents revealed several things, firstly that a proposed 2,000 home settlement in Marden has been dropped, much to the delight of villagers and secondly that the 5,000 figure for Heathlands is back on the cards.
When the Heathlands project was first unveiled, 5,000 homes were planned, to be built in stages over 20 year. It was to be served by a new junction on the M20 and a railway station connecting the new community to HS1.
But in the summer that number was reduced to 4,000 and those transport links were also dropped.
However, in the consultation documents it appears 5,000 is back on the cards as is a potential M20 junction and a new rail station provided on the Maidstone-Ashford line. There is no mention of a high speed connection.
A new primary school is planned but plans for a new secondary school are off the table for now, but could be bought back.
David Burton, chairman of the SPI committee said plans for the motorway junction and railway station were at “the early stages”.
The council has climbed back up to the higher figure by eyeing up land north of the currently proposed site, which is “conservatively assumed” has the potential for an additional 2,000 homes.
Indeed it is possible that land will be needed as the report admits “there is particular uncertainty around the delivery of the western portion of the site”, because of impacts from the Lenham Water treatment facility, potential for convergence with the village of Lenham, the impact on the AONB and an existing minerals allocation.
To add to this, last week it was revealed small landowners, whose land covers 63 acres, have written a letter of complaint to the council, outraged that their land was included in the Heathlands plan without their prior approval or agreement.
Without their land, the proposal would be possibly up to 990 homes short of the target, campaign group Save Our Heathlands (SOHL) say, which they hope would make the plan unfeasible.
However, Philip Coyne, interim director of the local plan, said the council is confident there are “safe and coherent parcels of land where there are people willing to work with the promoter to deliver a coherent plan.”
He added work has been ongoing to establish there are “sufficient landowners” to the north of the site to have constructive conversations with.
Kate Hammond from SOHL, described including Heathlands in the LPR as “high-risk strategy”.
She went on: “The local plan will ultimately be reviewed by an independent planning inspector who will be looking at the scheme in relation to the national planning guidance.
"It won’t take them long to realise that this proposal does not stack up in terms of the lack of infrastructure, inadequate employment opportunities and most importantly the poor lack of engagement with the local community.
“If the scheme fails, then not only will the councillors have egg on their faces, they will have lost the respect of local residents and will be back at square one to look at development sites once more.
"By then, they really will have lost control of the planning system. We will continue to fight this proposal until the council sees sense.”
The development north of the M2 in Lidsing is significantly smaller in scale than Heathlands, with 2,000 homes proposed, a new primary school and a new connection to the M2 at Junction 4.
Both new settlements are proposing as many jobs as there are homes.
Visiting member Cllr Eddie Powell questioned the evidence base behind the Heathlands proposal.
He said: “There’s a promise of jobs, I’ve yet to see any evidence behind that. The fact we haven’t got the evidence, the fact of the problems that have originated from this site, the fact you’re looking at best fifty-fifty as to whether an inspector would find it sustainable.
“I just think this could turn into a complete waste of money. I’m urging members to rethink.”
'This could turn into a complete waste of money...'
Mr Coyne said the council was happy with evidence base developed in the run up to the consultation.
The overall preferred approaches document was met with reservation by many committee members but there was an agreement to move forward, with the issues raised in the coming public consultation examined.
Cllr Patrik Garten said: “While I’ll help tonight pushing this rusty wagon forward, I won’t be pushing it over the finishing line in spring unless this rusty wagon receives a lot more TLC and more than a few drops of oil.”
Cllr Clive English said the preferred approaches wasn’t fit for purpose as a final document, but is “fit for consultation.”
He went on: “Personally I’m not convinced by the Lenham Heath proposal, however I will leave that for my representation.”
Cllr Burton said: “In the back of all our minds was the threat of high housing targets.”
“The document is not perfect, we were agreeing to the public consultation stage.”
It is not just new settlements which will provide new homes, towns and villages are expected to take their share as well.
Some were already allocated homes in the current 2017 local plan but the new consultation document outlines how many they will be asked to take on in addition.
The Maidstone urban area has been assigned 182, the outer edges of Maidstone have been assigned 1,084, Harrietsham 100, Headcorn 127, Marden 113, Staplehurst 127, Boughton Monchelsea 42, Coxheath 100, Eyhorne Street 11, Sutton Valence 100, Yalding 100 and the remaining countryside 25. Lenham, which could neighbour the huge Heathlands proposal has not been assigned any.
The consultation document reads: “The preferred approach for growth is felt to be sustainable. The growth pattern identified would ensure deliverability as it is a balanced approach across the borough.”
At present, 3,372 residential units allocated in the 2017 plan remain undeveloped.
In total 45 new site allocations for housing and businesses are proposed in the plan. A range of new sites to accommodate new office,
industrial and warehouse space have been assessed as suitable and appropriate for the LPR.
This includes Woodcut Farm, which could provide a business park at Junction 8 of the M20. The former Sygenta Works, a flat brownfield site is potentially suitable.
Land at Ashford Road, Lenham is proposed for a mix of employment uses, as is land between Maidstone Road and Whetsted Road.
The public consultation will open on Tuesday, December 1 and close on Tuesday 22 December 22.
