Decision due on 53 homes and commercial space in Ringmer

On Wednesday (April 6), Lewes District Council’s planning committee is due to consider an outline application to build commercial buildings and up to 53 houses in Uckfield Road.

While recommended for approval (subject to a legal agreement), the application has seen some significant opposition from Ringmer residents.

A significant part of the opposition revolves around the proposal’s conflict with the Ringmer Neighbourhood Plan (RNP), which allocates the whole site as an area for employment use.

Among the groups to make objections on this basis is Ringmer Parish Council, a spokesman for which said: “The application proposes to take one of the new employment sites identified in the RNP and instead develop 80 per cent of it as additional commuter housing. 

“The consequence would thus be to reduce the planned provision of additional local employment, at the expense of increasing the level of out-commuting by private car, for employment.”

The applicants, however, argue a purely commercial site would be financially unviable without housing to supplement the cost of construction and has provided evidence of this. 

The applicants also argue that these financial constraints would prevent them from providing the level of affordable housing required by council policy. If approved, therefore, the applicant would either build five affordable homes on site (10 per cent of the total number) or provide a commuted sum of £250,413 to build affordable housing elsewhere.

Formerly a chicken farm, the majority of the site has been largely disused for the past 20 years. 

The majority of the site is covered in a number of now derelict chicken sheds. The application seeks permission in principle to remove these buildings and build both housing and new commercial space in their place. 

There are also concerns that previous uses of the site have left significant levels of contamination. As a result of this it is considered unlikely that the illustrative designs for the scheme (pictured) would be achievable. 

While still at an outline stage, an approved development would be expected to include a total of 2,240 m² of office and light industry floor space. 

For further information on the proposals see application reference LW/20/0011 on the Lewes District Council website.

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