The discussion was almost scuppered by a complaint, however progressed only to be deferred as members wished to visit the site.
Recommending approval on Wednesday, officers told members of the committee the developer had provided answers to a number of queries and had submitted updated assessments of the site. Concerns from organisations such as Anglian Water and the Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust had been allayed they said.
They had previously said the plans, which will include a mix of houses, as well as bungalows for over 55s, along with 12 homes classed as affordable, would provide “effective” use of the land and not create “unacceptable harm”.
The site is allocated for housing in the Central Lincolnshire Local Plan.
How the site could be laid out.
Objectors say the plans present overdevelopment and create long-term risk to the village infrastructure, biodiversity, residential amenity and highway safety.
Resident Nigel Heward, said a lack of footpath provision at the proposed entry was “an accident waiting to happen”.
“Where are the poor pedestrians going to go? Where are the parents with children? Where are the partially sighted? They’re going to find no footpath and because of that, that road is not fit for purpose,” he said.
He suggested an additional access route to the west of the site.
However, committee chairman Councillor Ian Fleetwood reminded members it was not in their powers to ask for.
“As a planning committee we can only deal with the planning application as submitted and the planning application in front of us. We cannot redefine the roads in a full planning application, it’s beyond our realm,” he said.
Lincolnshire County Council, as statutory consultees on highways, had not lodged objections to the road plans.
The developer provided the committee with an updated landscaping plan.
Councillor Judy Rainsforth said: “Yes it could be a lot of traffic as children are leaving and being picked up from school, but highways don’t have any problem, and we know that if we go against that we seldom win.”
Councillor Roger Patterson said he had sympathy with the residents, but said he could find no viable reason to turn down the plans.
Mark Foster, land and planning director at Lindum Homes told the previous meeting the quality of houses was “vitally important” and the layout was “extremely low density”.
On Wednesday, he said the company had spent the time in between meetings responding to concerns. This included plans to make a net gain in biodiversity.
“This residential scheme, on an already residential site, is fully policy compliant,” he said.
As part of the plans the developers will be asked to make a £30,992.50 contribution to Welton Surgery so it can reconfigure its existing layout to create a larger clinical space and more flexibility to manage the projected patient increase.
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The final in the latest series of road closures for works on the A1, as part of the Grantham Southern Relief Road project, has been temporarily postponed
A weekend northbound A1 closure was due to be in place between 8pm on Friday, May 20 and 6am on Monday, May 23.
However, Lincolnshire County Council said the closure has been temporarily postponed and once new dates have been confirmed they will be shared.
Works on phase three began in April this year, with the council anticipating that winter 2023 will be the completion date for the relief road.
This will be with the view to reduce congestion and carbon emissions, and provide opportunities for growth in the local economy.
The £102 million Grantham Southern Relief Road project has been led by Lincolnshire County Council, supported by South Kesteven District Council, Highways England, Greater Lincolnshire LEP, Network Rail, Homes England, the Department for Transport and local business contributions.
Safety improvements have been carried out at corner where numerous accidents have occurred in East Keal.
The council is looking into what else can be done to prevent motorists from coming off the road at Hall Corner, while police are looking into the possibility of fitting a speed camera.
A cement lorry recently overturned on the corner in February.
Lincolnshire County Council has found a slight dip in the road where Blacksmith Lane meets the A16 could be the reason why heavy vehicles travelling at excessive speed are tipping over.
It is considering whether to smooth out and realign the road, but says it is concious of the impact that closing the A16 would have on traffic and local businesses.
Several safety improvement measures have already been put in place, including ‘slow’ markings, enhanced bend warning signs and improved chevrons.
Problems have been found with the road surface on the corner. | Photo: Google Street View
Lincolnshire Police are assessing whether a speed camera on the corner would be beneficial, and will be taking speed readings in the coming weeks.
Larger barriers and longer safety fencing have been proposed by the public. However, the county council says that in order for it to be big enough to withstand the impact of overturned vehicles, the cost can’t be justified.
Either the local parish council or the country council could also explore whether to fund a reactive speed sign on the location.
Richard Davies, executive member for highways, said: “We are very thankful to the residents and members of the parish council who have given us their ideas and support in what can be done at Hall Corner. Local knowledge and personal feedback are cornerstones of what we do in terms of delivering the best solutions in the most informed way.
“There has already been much done at this bend to try and mitigate the issues faced and we now have more planned for this particular area that will go on to encourage all road users to drive accordingly in line with the road and conditions.
“I would like to thank everyone involved so far for their input. We will all work together to get the best resolution we can for Hall Corner.”
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