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"Awful" Clifton Hill plans trashed

Tuesday, 18 August 2020 07:15

By Daniel Clark, local democracy reporter

Trees too close to houses, says Exeter Civic Society (illustration courtesy: Exeter City Living)

Exeter Civic Society not very civil about proposals

The Exeter Civic Society has called for the plans to redevelop Clifton Hill Sports Centre site to be withdrawn after identifying what it says are 18 failings.

In June Exeter City Living put forward a scheme to construct homes "of the highest quality and environmental standards" in place of the existing leisure centre, car parking area and adjacent rifle range building.

The former Clifton Hill sports centre would be replaced with 11 flats and 33 houses, while the golf driving range, ski slope and green space would remain untouched.

But Exeter Civic Society has written to the city council to ask it to withdraw its "awful" planning application, and said: “We have scrutinised the proposals in detail, and whilst the appearance of these contemporary homes is pleasing, we find them to be style over substance when we look into the detail.”

Keith Lewis, vice chairman, added: “It fails to meet the council’s own residential design and tree supplementary planning documents. The council proudly boast on their website that the residential design guidance was shortlisted for the Urban Design Group Public Sector Award in 2012 so we wonder why the council would not want its own developments to meet its own excellent recommendations.

“The Civic Society expects better of the council who should be producing exemplar proposals and homes within the city. If they do not follow their own Local Plan guidance how can they expect developers to do so?”

Mr Lewis added that the society has identified 18 failings with the proposals, including a significant lack of garden space, with many gardens the size of a car parking space, undersized garages, parking courtyards that are discouraged in their own guidance, a lack of cycle storage, and social housing that only just meets the council’s own space standards with buildings so close to mature trees that they will receive little natural light in the summer months.

He added: “The plans submitted show the existing trees between the site and a proposed new Newtown parkland as being small and insignificant, but the reality is that they will tower over a four storey block of social homes, as well as four adjacent homes intended for sale, as shown in the attached illustration. 

“These trees are so close to the adjacent homes that it is necessary to lop branches, but when the remaining  branches grow out over future years it is likely that they will touch the face of the buildings and also need to be lopped.

“We find this situation appalling and a sign of desperation on the part of Exeter City Living to cram as many homes as possible onto the site, and what makes this situation worse is that the homes most affected are the social homes rather than those planned for sale on the open market. We expect the city council to ensure that any new social homes provide a high level environment for tenants, and we think that future tenants are being treated like second class citizens when the flats are compared to the large and lavish homes that will be for sale.”

The Exeter Civic Society has asked officers and councillors to think again, withdraw the application and submit an improved scheme. It says: “If the council does not abide by its own supplementary design documents how can you expect developers to do so? We are convinced that a much better proposal can be developed.”

The application saw 18 comments registered against it, with 11 opposing the scheme, four supporting it and three neutral, with the Exeter Cycling Campaign also opposing the plans. The development will consist of a mix of one and two bed flats and larger four to five bed family town houses as part of the 33 townhouses and 11 flats proposed.

“The town houses reflect the character of the Newtown area in particular the area surrounding Belmont Park and offer much needed family living space in the heart of Exeter,” the statement says, adding that 11 of the 44 homes will be affordable.

All homes will have their own private gardens and the proposed development will be certified to Passivhaus standard, while as part of sustainable transport provisions, just 37 car parking spaces will be provided, and will see much needed new homes built on an unallocated brownfield urban site.

Exeter City Council planners will determine the fate of the application at a later date.

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