Planners approve housing plan for village near Winchester (From Hampshire Chronicle)

Planners approve housing plan for village near Winchester

8:30am Monday 26th December 2011 in West Winchester By Joseph Curtis

A FARM near Winchester is to be demolished to make way for new housing.

Church Farm, in Woodman Lane, Sparsholt, will be redeveloped into eight new homes, including three which are designated affordable after the city council rubber stamped a proposal last week.

But the application drew criticism from Sparsholt residents and the Parish Council, with 18 letters of objection sent to the council.

Parish council chairman Caroline Horrill told a city council planning committee deciding the application that it was unsuitable for the area and would increase already heavy traffic on difficult roads.

She said: “We consider the development will interfere quite considerably with the safety and character of the road network in Sparsholt. Cars are already unable to pass each other on that road and we believe increasing the traffic would only make it more dangerous.”

Cllr Keith Wood, who represents Sparsholt on the city council, added: “There is not sufficient visibility if you are coming out of the access road to Church Farm and you have to stick your nose out quite a way before you can see if anything is coming which is very dangerous.”

But planners argued the affordable housing was needed and the development would not have a negative effect on the area.