A developer wants to build 500 homes on land which has been described as Medway’s “green lung”.

Hume Planning Consultancy, on behalf of developer FD Attwood and Partners, contacted the council to see if an environmental impact assessment (EIA) was necessary before it submits an application to build on Darland Farm, Pear Tree Lane, Gillingham.

Planning officers have decided that a EIA is necessary.

The council has already received 18 letters of objection and Lordswood and Capstone ward councillor, Alan Jarrett, said he expects that number to rise. “I expect there will be lots of objections to it. We will just have to see what they are proposing.”

Objectors’ concerns include loss of wildlife, traffic problems, loss of green space and struggling public services.

A concerned resident, who lives in Leyton Avenue, Gillingham, said: “This area provides a green lung in what is fast becoming an urban jungle. Without it we would have to drive to find a comparable space to enjoy, hardly environmentally friendly.

“The road network which adjoins the proposed site is residential and could not be widened. It would struggle to cope with the huge increase in traffic.”

He added: “The geography of the site is unsuitable for such a development and would degrade the quality of life for all residents who cherish the Darland, Capstone Valley.”

Outline planning permission for 44 “executive homes” on the former brickfields site, next to Darland Farm, was granted in March.

In March, controversial plans for 450 homes, just down the road from the newly proposed site, at Gibraltar Farm, were given the go ahead after the government overturned a decision by the council.

The development in Capstone Valley was initially rejected after the proposal sparked uproar.
The council received hundreds of letters of objection and a petition was signed by almost 3,000 people.

The Attwood family, who were behind the application, appealed against the decision and, following a planning inquiry last October, the government upheld their appeal.