By Anna Whittaker, Local Democracy Reporter
A controversial warehouse and car park development could be built at a former RAF site which is now home to hundreds of people.
The former RAF Newton, near Bingham, was largely demolished to make way for 528 homes built by developer Redrow.
Now, applicant Newton Nottingham LLP has applied to build a 13,984sqm warehouse – around 3.5 acres.
There are already five hangars at the site, previously used by the RAF, which are now used by businesses for distribution including John Deere and Blue Diamond Garden Centres.
Redrow market the site as a ‘garden village’ with ‘wildlife-rich spaces’ where homes cost from £259,950.
But residents say the development will now be “sandwiched” between the warehouses if the plans are approved.
The plans have been recommended for approval at Rushcliffe Borough Council’s planning committee on Thursday (June 8).
One anonymous resident said they felt ‘misled’ by Redrow and raised concerns over the noise, air and light pollution associated with the warehouse plans.
But Redrow said all customers are made aware of the plans for the development, including the commercial area – which is not owned or controlled by the developer.
“Residents have been vocal regarding these issues with the vast majority of new Redrow homeowners being completely unaware of the plans or feeling misled by Redrow’s sales team”, the resident said.
They added: “Had Redrow shared all information available to them, I feel the vast majority of buyers would have looked elsewhere.
“The existing hangars already have a negative impact upon the village landscape and the Redrow ‘garden village’ concept, which has been mis-sold to many new residents which upon completion will add over 500 new homes to the area.”
They added: “During the home buying process Redrow explained the community master plan but failed to address the proposed commercial area until prompted. They were reluctant to go into detail and assured us that the area would provide facilities for the local community such as shops.”
After hundreds of objections, the warehouse plans have already been revised once to reduce the size of the building.
Despite the amended plans, Newton Parish Council confirmed that
it still objects to the proposal, noting that it was “fundamentally
still the same application”.
A service yard with 35 lorry parking spaces is proposed with access from Newton Lane and a car park with 122 parking spaces.
In total, 225 residents objected to the plans and two put forward statements of support.
The objections included noise and air pollution, highway safety for families, increased traffic, impact on house sales and disruption to wildlife.
Council documents stated: “Officers fully acknowledge that a building of this site is large, and that the amount of landscaping would not hide or fully conceal its mass or appearance from the surrounding area.
“Nevertheless, the site benefits from outline planning permission for this use, in this location and therefore the principle of development is already established.”
Michael Coker, Managing Director at Redrow East Midlands, said: “As part of our reservation process all customers are made aware of the plans for the development, including the commercial area which we do not own or control. We appreciate concerns around parking near the development and are looking to implement a temporary traffic calming solution in the area.
“Newton Garden Village is one of our flagship developments and is bringing much needed new homes and amenities to the area. This includes a contribution of £5.18 million to support the local area, including £2.35m towards local education, in addition to a community centre, allotments, and sports pitches.
“As well as this we’re creating sustainable transport links such as a footbridge over the A46 and making improvements to the Kirk Hill junction leading to Gunthorpe, alongside improvements to Main Street and Wellington Avenue.”
