£250,000 starter homes among 300 new properties approved for Northstowe
Three hundred more properties for Northstowe – including £250,000 starter homes – have been given the final sign-off, despite concerns raised by the town council.
South Cambridgeshire District Council gave its approval for the homes on land south of Rampton Drift, after examining details on the layout, the building design and sizes, and landscaping.
The latest development in the new town includes 60 affordable rent homes, made up of a mixture of one and two-bedroom flats, and two to four-bedroom houses.
There are also 119 ‘Northstowe Starter Homes’ proposed with prices capped at £250,000 for the first five years.
These will comprise one and two-bedroom flats, and two-bedroom houses.
There are 484 car parking spaces included in the plans, spread across the development.
Speaking to councillors at last week’s planning committee, a representative of the applicant Keepmoat Homes said the company was “proud” of the proposal that would provide “high quality” and “sustainable” homes.
But Northstowe Town Council had previously said that while it was in favour of the development “in principle” it objected to the plans that had been submitted.
Concerns raised by the town council included where the affordable housing had been placed in the development, and also described the use of renewable energy as not being “ambitious”. However, no representative from the town council was present at the planning committee.
Liberal Democrat Cllr Dr Tumi Hawkins, lead cabinet member for planning on the district council, said: “I must admit to be very disappointed that Northstowe Town Council is not here to speak on this application. It has come before us as they called it in. I would like to ask them questions and now I cannot. Looking at the comments made, having read through the paperwork, a lot of issues have been addressed.
“My question to them would have been are they sufficiently addressed to their satisfaction, but we don’t know, we can only go by what is here before us today.
“Frankly, I think a good job has been done here. I am happy with what I see before me.”
Cllr Judith Rippeth also said she felt it looked like “a very good application”.
Northstowe will eventually comprise about 10,000 homes.
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