Conservationists in Newbury are celebrating the ‘win’ after plans to redevelop a major site in the town centre got refused by the council.
The victory may end up being short lived, as the developer Lochialort looks set to appeal, confident that this time, the Government planning inspector will back the scheme to redevelop the Kennet Shopping centre.
West Berkshire has new housing targets, and the Government wants more homes built on sustainable sites.
So the rejected scheme – on grounds of it ruining the character of Newbury – might end up coming to fruition anyway, with a bill for the appeal being sent to the council, and funded by the tax payer.
“We welcome the council’s decision to refuse this development, which would have been damaging for Newbury,” said The Newbury Society’s David Peacock, who has opposed the scale of the development of 427 flats, which the society feels is out of keeping with the character of the town.
The proposed Kennet Shopping centre development from Market Street
The society has particularly objected to the complete lack of affordable housing, and to the effect on the setting of listed buildings.
The council’s own policy states that for developments providing 15-plus units on sites of 0.5ha or more, the requirement will be 30 per cent of the dwellings.
But that was side stepped, as the cost of the build (£158m) would not generate enough of a profit for the developer to make it viable,
The normal range of profit expected by developers and necessary to meet most lenders’ requirements is between 15 per cent and 20 per cent.
Kennet Centre plans rejected
Due to the current cost-of-living crisis and spiralling inflation, costs are rising considerably, in particular in construction due to pay awards and materials increases.
And finance, due to Bank of England base rate increases.
The construction industry is also heavily energy dependent, and the impact of energy price rises feedthrough into materials costs fully.
“The Newbury Society is in favour of modernisation or redevelopment of the Kennet Centre, but believes that any proposal needs to be on a scale which respects the rest of the town centre, which is a conservation area,” added Mr Peacock.
The focus of The Newbury Society’s objections has been the cluster of five-, six-, seven- and eight-storey buildings proposed at the southern end of the development, with five-storey buildings on the street frontages in Cheap Street and Bartholomew Street, and six-storey buildings on Market Street.
It says local opinion, while in favour of updating or redeveloping the Kennet Shopping centre, has been strongly against the ‘Eagle Quarter’ actual plans, as illustrated by the many objections received by West Berkshire Council.