St Leonards: Plans to build 37 new homes on wasteland put forward

MPG (St Leonards) Limited wants to place the 37 homes in West Hill Road.

The proposals, which have been submitted to Hastings Borough Council, include the creation of a new access onto West Hill Road, the construction of new walling to West Hill Road frontage, provision of landscaping, parking, earthworks and drainage.

People in the area have given their support to the plans and commented on the council’s planning portal.

Alexandra Cheeseman said: “Being a direct neighbour of this application I think the proposed development will bring a lot to the road, the mix of houses and flats along with the modern design and cliff reinforcement all appear appropriate to its area.

“Safety of the cliff edge and local homes is a key concern for this development and the measures planned to be in place appear proportionate.”

Ian Wright said: “I fully support this proposal as any concerns I had, would appear to have been addressed. The applicant appears to have done a very thorough job in taking account of all considerations.

“I believe the stability of the cliff has been addressed. I like the landscape strategy, keeping areas of green open space. In recent years the land has become very unsightly with fly tipping, graffiti and very overgrown.”

A design and access statement by Turner Jackson Day Associates, on behalf of the applicant, said: “The site is identified by the local authority as a development opportunity for residential development and the opportunity exists for a high quality residential scheme that will provide a prominent landmark.

“The topography of the site presents a practical challenge and will require the input from a structural engineer from the outset. A 10m no-development line has been established from the site boundary to the south to avoid building close to the cliff edge.

“The proposal seeks to provide a mix of new, high-quality homes consisting of 10 no. four-bedroom, semi-detached dwellings and 27 no. one and two-bedroom apartments.

“The design has been landscape led, with the strategy for the site being to reduce the amount of development, incorporate more and larger landscaped areas and to preserve, enhance and integrate the existing green open space and biodiversity.

“The scale and mass of the proposal has been carefully balanced to ensure that the development does not dominate the adjacent neighbouring properties whilst being significant enough to be befitting of its cliff top setting.”