Preliminaries
- A Statement of Common Ground was agreed between the principal parties and submitted at the hearing. It sets out details of the appeal proposal, a description of the appeal site and its surroundings, and the relevant planning policies, together with matters of agreement and matters of dispute. It also includes a list of draft conditions, and 4 appendices.
- An obligation made under section 106 of the above Act, in the form of a Planning Agreement dated 23 April 2013, was also submitted at the hearing. The Agreement is made between the owners of the land, the prospective developer (the appellant), the Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council and the Leicestershire County Council. Amongst other matters, it makes provision for the delivery of 5 affordable houses, the laying out of public open space, and the payment of a number of contributions for/to: the maintenance of public open space (£55,368), the West Leicestershire Clinical Commissioning Group (£13,922), the Leicestershire Constabulary (£11,125), civic amenities (£1,176), libraries (£1,540), bus passes (£16,250), bus stops (£6,526), bus display (£240), and travel packs (£1,321).
- I have taken account of the contents of both documents in the determination of this appeal.
- At the hearing a request was made on behalf of the council for the case to be adjourned until a public inquiry could be held. The request was founded on the complexity of the issues associated with the 5 year supply of housing land and the desirability of cross-examination. The council also drew attention to an outstanding High Court challenge concerned, amongst other matters, with the appropriate methodology for calculating the housing land requirement. The appellant argued the case was entirely suitable for consideration by means of a hearing. Having heard the representations from the principal parties, I considered that little would be gained by deferring the matter, and that it would be unacceptable to have to wait until the challenge was decided. I concluded the case was suitable for determination by means of a hearing.
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