Homes plan for Otley flood plain is rejected (From Wharfedale Observer)

Homes plan for Otley flood plain is rejected

12:52pm Thursday 30th August 2007

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A 60-home scheme for Otley's flood plain has been rejected after planners ruled it posed an unacceptable risk.

The application, which has been roundly condemned by the Environment Agency, has been turned down by officers from Leeds City Council's planning department under delegated powers.

But the developers have already confirmed that they will appeal against the rejection of their plan for the former Bridge End Cattle Market site.

Bill Hudson, of Wharfe Bridge said "We are of course disappointed that planning permission for this development has been refused. However some serious time, thought and experience has gone into this project and we are confident that once we can further demonstrate that the flooding has been properly addressed and provides a benefit far beyond the development itself, the appeal will be successful."

The council's decision has delighted campaigners who described it as a small but significant victory for local people'.

Now they are preparing for a further battle after learning that Wharfe Bridge is challenging the outcome.

The proposed development for 31 houses, 29 flats, a café and office with car parking has provoked widespread opposition from the local community as well as from councillors and the town's MP Greg Mulholland.

And it seemed doomed to failure after the Environment Agency warned that lives could be put at risk if the scheme was allowed to go ahead.

In a stark message issued in July as parts of the country were hit by severe flooding, the Environment Agency warned that the scheme would create an unacceptable risk to life and property,' - and it urged planners to reject it.

Now the application has been turned down after a recommendation from the Chief Planning and Development Services Officer that permission should be refused on a number of grounds.

The report says the scheme would "cause an unacceptable risk of flooding to the proposed development itself and increase the risk of flooding to nearby properties.."

It says the scheme would be harmful to the appearance of the landscape adjacent to the River Wharfe which contributes to the historic setting of Otley town and the setting of the bridge which is an ancient monument.

Leeds planners also believe the proposed transport and highways aspects of the scheme are unacceptable, and they say the layout is unsatisfactory.

The nine point list of reasons for refusal also describes the development as over-intensive, and criticises the design of the housing layout as well as the mix and location of the affordable housing element.

But Wharfe Bridge claims that not only do the proposals improve the flooding situation for the town, they also provide economic and social benefits to the community that can't be met by an alternative scheme.

A statement from the developers said: "Despite the economic positives that would have been brought to Otley should this application have been approved, Leeds City Council has insisted that the objection in principle from the Environment Agency (EA) states that flooding is far too great an issue to allow the development to be approved.

"Wharfe Bridge will be appealing the decision by LCC and will continue to work with its project designers in pursuit of making the development a reality.

"With the government's recent research stating there is a lack of housing in the UK; Wharfe Bridge had proposed to build 25per cent of the development specifically designed as affordable housing for local people.

"From the outset flooding has been acknowledged as a high priority. Wharfe Bridge worked closely with specialist flood risk consultants JBA Consulting, to guarantee that appropriate flood risk mitigation measures would be incorporated into the development, ensuring that not only the development itself would be protected, but also would reduce flood risk to a nearby residential area.

"Raising of the site, to above the 100 year' flood level would have effectively blocked an existing flood route that currently conveys water across the site towards Billams Hill and Farnley Lane.

"Further mitigation works, in the form of lowering ground levels between the river and the development site, would have compensated for the potential impacts of the development, preventing increases in the river flood level.

"The raising of the site levels would ensure that the development area would no longer sit in the High Probability' Flood Zone 3. Discharges of surface water from the site would also be controlled to maintain existing rates, using storage within the drainage system, to prevent an increase in flood risk.

"The council have raised highlighted traffic and highways as an issue, however the development's highways scheme was produced in consultation with LCC and clearly showed that its implementation would improve safety in the area."

Otley councillor and Plans Panel West Chairman Colin Campbell welcomed the decision to reject a residential development at the site, which flooded earlier this year.

He said: "The site was unsuitable and the proposals would have been detrimental to the area."

Otley's MP Greg Mulholland said: "I am delighted that commonsense has prevailed and that this totally unsuitable development has been thrown out."

"I also want to pay tribute to those involved in the Conserve Otley Riverside Campaign - they have done an excellent job rallying support against this development. This is a victory for the local community.

"I hope that the developers accept that this was a non starter and there should now be a dialogue about what is done with this important piece of land and it is essential that local people are given their say in this."

But the campaign group CORC are warning that their fight does not appear to be over. They said they were delighted the application had been turned down but added that they had been told the developers were likely to make a second application.

CORC believes the Environ-ment Agency would probably object in principle to the second application.

"In that case, CORC understands that the developers are likely to go for a public enquiry to challenge the Environment Agency's grounds for objection, so it may be a long fight" said campaign member John Chipp-endale.

Setting aside the obvious - and we think insurmountable - floodplain objections, we will be very interested to see how the new planning application deals with all the other significant objections."

CORC member Penny Mares added, "What we have learned from the process so far is the vital importance of local knowledge.

"Otley residents have been able to pool detailed information and personal experiences of the different issues that make the Cattle Market such a strategic site. Our collective knowledge meant we that could bring details to the attention of the planning authority that might otherwise have been overlooked."

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