THE FIRST phase of the controversial Peel Hall planning application has been approved by a council in Cheshire – allowing more than 400 houses to be built on the land.
The plan proposes up to 1,200 new homes be built on the land near the M62 in Houghton Green, Warrington.
The first phase will see 404 two, three and four-bed homes being built, with 236 of them being affordable housing.
The threat of the site being built on has been one residents have been set against for more than 30 years.
Despite Warrington Borough Council previously refusing outline permission for the 1,200 homes, the decision was overruled in 2021 by the Planning Inspectorate.
As well as homes on land between the M62, Mill Lane, Poplars Avenue and Elm Road, permission was also sought for layout, scale, appearance and landscaping, as well as playing fields and upgrades to a multi-use games area, community building and associated car parking, public open space, footpaths, allotments and infrastructure.
Present at a Warrington Borough Council planning meeting yesterday, Thursday, were members of the Steen family, longstanding campaigners against the development.
The family have operated Peel Hall Kennels for the past 26-years, and believe the development would jeopardise the business.
They believe that if approved, when the houses near their business are occupied, just one noise complaint could see the long-standing business shut down.
Noise assessments were carried out both by the family and the developers to assess the level of disruption the kennels would have on the residents.
To do this, the ‘worst case scenario’ of the loudest barking dog in the closest area to the development for a sustained period of time was monitored.
However, the assessment carried out by the applicant came under fire from Gary Steen.
“Neither the applicant nor the environment officer have visited the kennels to enquire how the operations are currently run or how it may be in the future,” he said.
“All the applicants noise assessments were challenged by our own noise expert who found significant errors and admissions in the applicants report.
“This means the environment officer has two noise specialists in disagreement, critically about how high the noise from the dogs will be at the proposed houses.
“The officer cannot verify which noise specialist report is correct.”
Mr Steen then pleaded with the council to defer deciding on the plan due to these concerns.
“I’m asking you to defer the decision until the independent noise assessment has been done to help the environment officer reach an informed decision based on accurate data,” he said.
“Please don’t brush this under that carpet. This is our last chance to get it right.”
In response to the concerns raised Imogen Zulver, a senior planner from Litchfields UK, aimed to reassure members of the committee, and the owners of the kennel, that the business would not be in danger.
“Members can be reassured that noise from the kennels will not affect new residents, and importantly the existing business will be protected,” she said.
“In fact, it is highly probably that new residents will bring new business to the kennels, and Countryside is happy to promote and advertise the kennels through signposts and welcome packs to new residents.”
The benefits of the scheme were also reiterated, including the fact that '60 per cent' of the houses would be affordable and, would be sustainably produced.
Members of the committee then voted to approve the plan, despite the fact two members voted against, and two abstained.
Therefore, the first phase of the Peel Hall development can commence.
“Securing planning permission for the first phase of Peel Hall is a considerable milestone for the site’s wider masterplan,” said Gemma Hardy, managing director of Vistry Manchester and Cheshire East.
“This is a transformative development that will have a major impact on the area, developing a range of affordable and open market housing options and wider community benefits, including significant areas of new public open space and improvements to local services and facilities.
“We are pleased we can now commence work with our partner Torus on this exciting project.”
The first phase will also see the provision of a new community building to replace Radley Common Community Centre and changing facilities for new football pitched. As well as this, £1.3 million will be invested in local transport and infrastructure.
“Creating thriving, sustainable communities is at the heart of any development Torus delivers and as an organisation with roots in Warrington, we’re thrilled to be able to continue our mission of building even more affordable homes in the local area,” said Chris Bowen, managing director of Torus developments.
“Peel Hall will provide so many benefits to Warrington – outside of just bolstering access to new, modern homes – and the entire team is excited to begin work on this landmark project with Vistry.”
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