This week sees Wokingham Borough Council’s Toutley East proposals for 130 new energy efficient homes take a step forward with the submission of an outline planning application for the site.
The plans also include proposals for a new specialist dementia care home on the site to meet increased local need, subject to the approval of the final business case. The facility has been included in the outline application to help speed up the process once approval is given.
“With Grazeley no longer a realistic option for housing we need to look at locations where we can deliver the new homes our borough needs with the least impact on residents.” Said Cllr John Kaiser, executive member for finance and housing. “The Toutley East site was already identified for employment development under the current local plan, however our review showed this was no longer viable, and we proposed to change the site to residential in the local plan update in early 2020.”
“Feedback from our masterplan consultation at the start of this year showed a mix of views about the site with some people supporting the idea of carbon neutral development, and others concerned about the impact of noise from the road or about historic flooding in the area. We’re confident the proposals we have submitted show how things like this can be addressed, and we will also demonstrate this in more detail through the reserved matters process should we be granted outline consent later this year.
Subject to planning the council proposes to use the site to showcase energy efficient residential development by introducing a range of initiatives such as solar panels, air source heat pumps and high levels of insulation. Helping tackle climate change and supporting the council’s ambitions to be net carbon zero by 2030.
The Toutley East planning application can be viewed on the council website www.wokingham.gov.uk by searching for planning application number 211777. People have until Tuesday 29 June to comment on the proposals.
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