NFDC gives green light for controversial 20-home development at Everton Nurseries

CONTROVERSIAL plans to build 20 homes on land at Everton Nurseries have been approved, despite concerns from residents and the parish council.

Developer EG Dunford has agreed for half of the properties to be affordable housing, and while Hordle Parish Council welcomed this, it objected to the development on the grounds it could set a precedent for dwellings outside of the settlement boundary.

The application also received 29 letters of objection from locals who were concerned about overdevelopment, noise and disturbance, construction traffic and a loss of trees. Six letters were received in support.

The properties – a mixture of houses and flats – will be built on part of the Christchurch Road site currently occupied by glasshouses and dilapidated timber buildings, as well as creating informal public open space and a children’s play area.

Of the 20 homes, 16 would be two, three and four-bedroom homes, and there will be four one-bed flats. They will be a mix of shared ownership and affordable rent.

The main access from the A337 Christchurch Road will be retained to serve Everton Nurseries, while an existing secondary access from Farmers Walk – a cul de sac with no pavements – would serve the proposed new development.

The scheme includes 48 parking spaces for residents. A rearranged car parking layout for the nursery was submitted to show all 104 existing spaces would remain.

The application was recommended for approval by council officers, who said in a report: “The proposal would make a small, positive, contribution to the council’s housing supply.

“The level of third party objection to this development is acknowledged and the concerns expressed have been carefully considered.

“The impact of the proposed development on the amenity of existing adjoining residents has been assessed, and it is concluded that there would be no resultant demonstrable harmful impacts that would justify refusal of planning permission.”

Speaking at NFDC’s planning committee meeting this week, Cllr Kate Crisell said the development was “fantastic” and added: “I’d like to live there myself, but I can understand why the residents don’t want it.”

Cllr Malcolm Wade said: “The reality is, we don’t build enough houses in the New Forest and because of that, we are now faced to develop sites that, if we had a choice, we probably wouldn’t want to do.

“It is one of those decisions we will probably reluctantly have to take, because I really do have sympathy for the residents and the points they have made, but we are arbitrators of our demise – if we’d built more houses in the past, we wouldn’t have to look at sites like these.”

However, Cllr David Hawkins said he was against the scheme: “It is a dangerous route as there is no public footpath. We have to value people’s lives and to me, it is too dangerous.”

Members voted seven to five in favour of the plans, with one abstention.