Questions whether another Crewe housing estate has valid planning permission
Cheshire East is seeking legal advice over whether a second large housing estate in Crewe which is already partly occupied, still has a valid planning permission.
On Wednesday 30 July, The southern planning committee deferred an application to vary a condition relating to house-type on part of the Watkin Jones development off Sydney Road.
This was because councillors wanted written legal confirmation regarding a possible breach of regulations and whether the existing planning permission had been nullified.
The concerns relate only to the Watkin Jones part of the site, which currently has permission for 245 homes, 159 of which are affordable.
The validity of the planning permission was raised by Stuart Ames, who lives in a property close to the development.
He said there had been numerous breaches of planning conditions on the Watkin Jones site and claimed a pre-commencement condition had not been discharged.
"Under Cheshire East planning policy, any development started with undischarged pre-commencement conditions does not have planning permission," said Mr Ames.
Knutsford councillor, Stewart Gardiner (Conservative), later told the meeting: "If the pre-condition is not approved, there is a question mark about validity of the original planning permission.
"As a member of the strategic planning board, I sat through three meetings where we had to consider the issue of Coppenhall Place because a pre-condition had failed to be approved.
"And at the final meeting, when we did approve the variation to the details of that application, we did so in order that the people who lived there were able to secure re-mortgaging etc, because otherwise they all lived in houses which did not benefit from planning."
Cllr Gardiner said he understood the drainage condition on the Watkin Jones development was a pre-condition.
"Is the situation here similar in terms of the fact that breaches of pre-conditions have deemed the original planning application invalid?" he asked.
"Because, if they have, how can we possibly approve a variation to a condition to adapt to a planning which is no longer valid?"
Planning officer, Daniel Evans, confirmed the earlier reserve matters application did have a pre-commencement condition, condition five, which related to drainage.
He later added: "I'm struggling to find online if condition five was ever discharged."
Committee chair Joy Bratherton (Crewe North, Labour), asked: "Are we in a situation where we can actually agree this, or are we looking at some other course of action?"
The council's planning lawyer, Peter Jones, said he needed the information to answer that question because 'if you start commencing development, digging, etc, and you haven't discharged those conditions, then there is a real problem for the validity of your permission."
Cllr Bratherton said: "I think, as a committee, we need a firm understanding, first of all, of whether the pre-condition work has been done.
"If it hasn't, then we need to find out the legalities of that.
"We're not having another Coppenhall Place, that's for sure."
The committee voted unanimously to defer the application to obtain a written legal opinion as to whether a breach of planning condition has occurred and whether planning permission has been nullified.
It also wanted to know over whether it is possible to vary an already varied planning application and sought clarification as to why all other conditions had not been included within the recommendation.
A separate application from Watkin Jones, on another part of the site, for 24 homes, was approved.
READ MORE:New self-storage facility approved at former Crewe printworks with hours cut.
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