Plans to increase number of homes in Shripney development thrown out

Concerns about overdevelopment have seen outline plans for up to 31 homes on a site in Shripney being refused.

Back in January 2018, Arun District Council’s development control committee approved plans to demolish a house and outbuildings off Shripney Road and replace it with 20 homes.

The latest outline application was much the same but for 11 more flats and houses -which members felt was ‘a step too far’.

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Outline applications go into very little detail about proposals, simply allowing members to decide if a development would be acceptable.

While planning officers insisted the details could be worked out at a later date – including the exact number of homes which would be built – some members were not convinced.

Describing the proposals as ‘very cramped’ and ‘unworkable’ they voted to refuse the application on the grounds that it was overdeveloped, had insufficient car parking, the density of the homes was ‘inappropriate’ and there was a loss of amenity.

June Hamilton (Ind, Pagham) said: “Approving 31 houses when we know it’s going to be over-crowded and too dense is making a rod for our own backs later down the line.”

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Richard Bower (Con, East Preston) said: “They’ve got planning permission for 20 but I don’t think they should have it for 31.”

Mr Bower told the meeting that, when the 20-home application was being considered, the committee had persuaded the applicant to move the access point to a less dangerous spot.

He said: “I still think it’s a rather dangerous access but we can’t convince the highways authority officers to actually agree with us.”

Martin Lury (Lib Dem, Bersted) agreed, pointing out that visibility from the proposed access point was only 71m, which is the statutory minimum, with ‘significant amounts of traffic’ passing.

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He said: “I’m a little bit concerned that, as a council, we shouldn’t work on a statutory minimum. We should be better than that.”

To view the application, log on to www.arun.gov.uk/planning and search for BE/69/19/OUT.

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