Torfaen council to vote on future homes plan

From the BBC

Plans for 4,700 new houses and a larger Gypsy and Traveller site will be considered by Torfaen council as it looks ahead to future housing needs.

The Local Development Plan (LDP) will set out planning guidance until 2021.

The previous plan in 2011 was rejected by the Welsh government's planning inspector for not having enough new housing or plans for Traveller sites.

Torfaen says it aims to achieve a "network of integrated communities", focusing on Cwmbran and Pontypool.

The council said it aims to take advantage of brownfield sites but says some greenfield sites will also have to be developed.

The new plan includes proposals to build fewer homes - 4,700 instead of 5,000 - to reflect "changing market conditions".
'Pressure'

Around 24% of new builds, amounting to 1,132 homes, would be affordable housing.

South Sebastopol is one of the controversial greenfield developments.

In 2011, the council rejected plans by Barratt Homes on behalf of a consortium to build 1,200 homes on the former farmland.

Campaigners had argued 1,200 homes there would put nearby amenities, roads and schools under pressure.

In March last year, the council voted to remove the proposal from the LDP. But Barratt won an appeal to develop the site.

It is proposed to enlarge the Rose Cottage Gypsy and Traveller site near Pontypool to address overcrowding.
Aggregates

The council also plans to make an existing quarry at Tir Pentwys, near Pontypool, its preferred site to potentially allow 7.2m tonnes of aggregates to be quarried between 2013 and 2031.

There is already a planning application to recover 4.75m tonnes of aggregates at the site, which is yet to be considered by the council.

Should Torfaen not adopt the new LDP, the Welsh government has the power to intervene and adopt the plan on the council's behalf and charge the local authority the costs of so doing.