75 new homes near Coventry approved on green belt land

Building 75 new affordable homes on green belt land has received overwhelming support from councillors. Despite the development being planned for green belt land, not a single objection has been raised against the scheme.

The proposed site on the northern edge of Meriden would offer a variety of housing options, including social rent, affordable rent and shared ownership homes, developers say. Plans for the Maxstoke Lane site include a range of properties “from one-bedroom cottages to four-bedroom houses”.

There were initial doubts that the scheme would get the go-ahead from Solihull Council’s planning committee due to previous pledges by senior leaders to protect the green belt. However, officers recommended the scheme for approval.

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They say applicant Stonewater – one of the UK’s largest providers of social housing – has demonstrated very special circumstances. Officers also noted in their report to the committee that “the site is identified as a potential allocation for residential development in the ongoing Local Plan review for up to 100 homes”.

During the most recent planning meeting, Councilor Edward Fitter asked if there were many objections to the proposal from residents. Officers replied: “This is quite an unusual request – no objections have been received from any local residents. The parish council has not objected to the proposal and we have not received any negative comments about the scheme,” reports Birmingham Live.

Councilor Mark Wilson commented on the proposal, saying: “Overall this looks quite positive. I know this area well”. He noted that fly tipping was a problem nearby and suggested that new housing could help prevent it in the future.

Wilson raised a question about potential contamination at the proposed site. In response, officers indicated: “There is some historical evidence of a hospital on the site at one time and there is some question as to whether the site was used as a quarry. A contaminated state of the land is therefore required and this will need to be further analyzed by the claimant.”

In the end, the commission gave its approval, with conditions, by eight votes to none and one abstention during the meeting held at the Civic Suite on May 15.

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