Homes developers ‘jumping the gun’ in hotspot

At present Harrogate Borough Council is putting together a planning blueprint for the town, earmarking sites suitable to build 4,000 homes and other development it is estimated will be needed in future. Public talks on the plan are due to get under way shortly.

However last night, Coun Jim Clark, North Yorkshire County Councillor for the Harlow Division, said he had been concerned that he had been contacted by developers, indicating an interest in building 450 homes at a site at Cardale Park, which is currently included in the draft local plan.

Two other developers have recently signalled they want to build 600 houses at Penny Pot Lane and 210 homes at Skipton Road. The draft local plan – yet to be agreed – identifies these sites and others as suitable for development.

Coun Clark, also borough councillor for Rossett Ward, said: “The council have spent a great deal of time and money drawing up and consulting upon a local plan but the process is not yet complete – the public are still to have their final say before the plan goes to an inspector later this year.

“Throughout Harrogate developers are jumping the gun by bringing forward planning applications before the local plan is complete – effectively hijacking the proper process.”

He says the justification given by the developers for bringing the plans forward, before the local plan has been finalised, is that there have been recent proposals in relation to two other major sites to the west of Harrogate at Penny Pot Lane and Skipton Road.

The authority estimates it will need to build 390 homes each year up to 2024. Earlier, Coun Alan Skidmore, cabinet member for planning, stressed people needed access to homes they could afford in an area where prices are high.