80-home development at Calmore approved

DETAILED plans for 80 new homes near Totton – more than half of which will be affordable – have been approved by New Forest District Council.

Affordable housing developer Aster Communities plans to turn the 4.4 hectares of agricultural fields at Loperwood Lane in Calmore into a new development of properties including flats and houses.

This will include two, three and four-bedroom detached, semi-detached and mid-terraced homes as well as a block of six flats. Seventy per cent of properties are earmarked for social rent and 30% for shared ownership.

An application to develop the site was originally turned down by NFDC in 2016 after it received more than 100 objections.

The decision was appealed by the then-applicant, London-based Howard Sharp & Partners, and residents were shocked when NFDC later announced it was abandoning its attempt to block the scheme and would be offering no evidence, following legal advice.

The scheme was subsequently granted outline planning permission in 2017 and later included in NFDC’s Local Plan, which sets out planning policy outside the national park.

The detailed proposals by Aster Communities, which were recently approved by NFDC, gave further information on the layout of the homes, the materials used and details of access, which will be via Loperwood Lane.

The application also gave details of landscaping, which includes a pond, a bin and cycle store and 189 parking spaces.

It added: “The proposals will lead to the development of the site in a manner that produces high-quality new homes for local residents.

“Within the southern half of the site, this structure is arranged to create an arrival space in the form of a small, landscaped village green with pond enclosed with a combination of narrow-fronted and wide-fronted cottage style dwellings.”

The application was supported by Totton and Eling Town Council but NFDC received five letters of objections from locals.

Among the issues raised were concerns about flooding, disruption to wildlife, noise disturbance, access and the impact on the nearby Grade II listed Calmore Cottage.

A council report to chief planning officer Claire Brown, who approved the plans, said the development would deliver a range of significant, economic, social and environmental benefits.