6 days Ago By [email protected] (Mary Harris)
A new estate of up to 130 homes in a tight-knit village in with a cycle link to the primary school is proposed, but villagers say it will make flooding worse and the infrastructure is already pressured. Outline for the 26 acres, two farming fields in Green Belt in Five Oak Green, have been submitted to , which include a new school staff car park, a 'daily mile' track and measures to alleviate flooding. The site is six miles from , and under five miles from .
Half of the homes would be affordable housing, and the applicant quotes the council's "identified need" for 6,000 new homes to be delivered between 2006 and 2026. While Tunbridge Wells and Southborough must take 75 per cent of these, the applicant pointed out six per cent must be delivered in villages, "including Five Oak Green". B.
Yond Homes Ltd, which shares a postal address with Rydon Group Ltd, also said it was "Grey Belt" at the site at Finches Farm on Five Oak Green Road. The term Grey Belt is oft-quoted by developers or land scouring agents, since the term was popularised by the Government last year, and added to the national planning policy. It is used to describe Green Belt land which has either previously been developed or is considered not to align with the purpose of Green Belt designation.
The cycle and pedestrian link would be a dedicated, off-road route, replacing the need to use a narrow pavement to get to Capel Primary School, said B.Yond Homes. It also proposed a "village gateway" west of the school, to discourage speeding and make the road safer, said B.
Yond. A new 30-space staff car park, with two disabled bays, would be built, along with a "daily mile" track for 15 minutes of daily running, jogging or walking. It said the site was "predominantly" in Flood Zone 1, according to the Environment Agency's mapping, which was low risk of flooding.
However, the north east corner of the site is within Zone 2 and 3. "Most of the site lies outside of the active floodplain and is suitable for accommodating residential development, it is however, clear that the floodplain affects a significant number of existing residential properties to the east of the site," said B.Yond in its application.
It said its scheme would include drainage systems to dispose of surface water. It said: "These flood compensation measures are unique to the site, providing substantial betterment to the existing residents, as well as removing the developable area proposed from the floodplain entirely." But one resident described it as a "heartbreaking and deeply concerning development".
He said that during the 2020 flooding, the water was pumped on to the land, to "save the properties and residents". Simon Payne said: "It is where the flood waters naturally go to. Building 130 properties on here will almost certainly mean that all waters will flood Sychem Place and the main road regularly.
Combined with the loss of the environment, our homes will lose all saleable value and ruin our lives. This cannot be permitted." Another householder had other concerns, including "more unaffordable housing, more green land gone and not enough infrastructure as it is".
Victoria Everest added: "A small village school that won't be able to take all the children of the village, local NHS services under more pressure when they can barely cope already! And the cars that park along the road at school time will no doubt be parking in residential roads at drop off and pickup because the junctions will take that away too. And what happens to the hoppers huts? Those lovely people who stay therethrough spring/summer are a HUGE part of this village." to receive your daily dose of KentLive content.
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