12 Jul 2023
Councillors have voted to move the district’s draft Local Plan into the next stage – public consultation.
Monday’s meeting of SADC’s planning policy and climate committee saw members rejected calls to pause the plan while government housing targets are reviewed, claiming to do so would open themselves up to external intervention.
Public consultation on the draft Local Plan runs from July 12 to September 25, giving residents, key governing bodies and other parties the chance to have their say on the proposals.
Technical studies determined the land most suitable for development., which 12 broad locations each providing 250 or more homes and 90 large, medium or small sites each providing between five and 249.
New residential areas will be supported by between three to four new secondary schools, eight to 10 new primary schools, a minimum 25,000 new trees and new country parks.
Gee Smedley on behalf of Team CLASH (Campaigning Locals Against Sewell Housing), which is fighting a scheme for housing in north St Albans, claims the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities has neither the time nor the inclination to intervene in the St Albans Local Plan process.
She said: “Cllr White seems to revel in his excitement at delivering this Plan, claiming that any vote against it was a vote against a generation of aspiring home owners. We feel such greenwashing and spin devalues the scrutiny that should be given to the proposals. What generation wants to trash their own countryside forever?
“By not pausing the Plan, we feel taxpayers’ money is being spent on assessing a Plan with the wrong housing targets.
“Only Cllr Heritage and Cllr Mitchell stuck to their guns and asked the most questions during the meeting, arriving at the conclusion that the draft Local Plan was full of omissions and continued to lack the evidence base needed, so it should be paused to ensure that any existing data on traffic, environmental impact, services etc, is available.
“They also highlighted the fact that central government changes which remove the use of the Standard Method of housing projections and enhance Green Belt protections further come into affect soon, and all of this must be taken into account.”
A series of exhibitions on the Local Plan will be taking place at venues around the district during September with council officers on hand to answer questions.
Spatial planning officers will analyse the feedback and report their findings to the committee at a future date, making recommendations for any changes to the Plan before a further consultation.
Council leader Cllr Chris White said SADC was bound to follow existing government guidelines in shaping a Local Plan, stressing: “Now is the time for the public to have their say. “It is vital that we hear from people right across the community and I particularly hope that we get a good response from our younger residents.
“It’s crucial that their voices are heard as they are the future of St Albans district and the Local Plan maps out the years ahead until 2041.
“By speaking up, they will help shape our proposals on all the important issues involved.
“It may be that during our Local Plan process, the Government will review its standard method of calculating housing need, resulting in a lower figure for the district.
“I have challenged them to do so and we will adapt our draft Local Plan if that happens. In the meantime, it would be reckless of us not to follow the current guidelines.”
A further consultation on the draft Local Plan that emerges from this process is due to take place from July to September 2024. This is known as the Regulation 19 consultation and could result in further changes.
Following that, the final draft that is agreed is scheduled to be submitted to a Government-appointed Planning Inspector for examination in December 2024. If it is approved, it may be adopted by the council around December 2025.
Cllr White added: “We are anticipating making major changes to the Local Plan before it is submitted, particularly following this first consultation.
“This is because we will be responsive to the feedback we receive from residents, community groups, organisations like Herts county council and changes in Government policies. This is an evolving document which our community will have a major role in shaping.”
