Barton Farm inquiry set for delay (From Hampshire Chronicle)

Barton Farm inquiry set for delay

5:30pm Thursday 17th June 2010 in Barton Farm By Warwick Payne

Barton Farm campaigners, who have won the latest round of their battle to stop the greenfield site being developed

A LOOMING inquiry to decide if 2,000 homes should be built on Barton Farm at Winchester looks set to be delayed.

Developer, Cala Homes, wants more time to prepare after the new Government said regional housing targets would be scrapped.

It comes after Winchester City Council again refused permission for the scheme at a meeting on Monday (June 14).

Afterwards, Cala land director Mike Emett accused the authority of “unbelievable hypocrisy” for blocking the homes, of which 800 would be ‘affordable’.

But the decision was welcomed by most of the 100 people at the meeting, who aim to protect the greenfield site.

Planning officers also advised that is should be refused, and councillors queued up to attack the proposals.

Indeed, the only planning committee member to support it was Cllr Ian Tait, who liked the idea of more affordable homes.

He predicted he would be a lone voice in backing the scheme, which also includes new shops and a primary school.

He was proved right, but the council’s refusal has not killed the plan off as Cala Homes had already lodged an appeal with the national Planning Inspectorate.

The firm argued that the council took too long to decide, meaning that a Government inspector would be asked to chair a public inquiry to settle the issue.

The hearing – due to start on Tuesday, September 7 – could also have arisen if the authority decided sooner and Cala challenged the ruling.

But after the council ruling, Mr Emett said they had now asked the Planning Inspectorate to postpone the inquiry.

He added that they needed more time to prepare, given the new Government’s aim to scrap regional housing targets.

Westminster’s move had made him “very angry”, he said, but he reserved his greatest criticism for the local authority.

He said: “What the council is doing is totally ignoring the housing need in their area. It was unbelievable hypocrisy as they say there is a housing need and then they are not prepared to meet it.

“If you’ve got a young family and you can’t get onto the property ladder the message seems to be ‘move to Basingstoke’.”

He added: “I congratulate Cllr Tait who was the only one there who had the guts to stand up for the community as a whole.”

Mr Emett said they would learn within the next couple of weeks if the inquiry would be postponed.