DETAILS of how the largest potential housing site in Monmouthshire has been earmarked for a small village are to be explained to the public.
Up to 925 homes could be built by 2033 in an area Monmouthshire County Council has dubbed Caldicot East – encompassing the adjoining village of Portskewett.
The village’s county councillor, Lisa Dymock, has already objected to the proposals but is urging local residents to have their say when the council holds a consultation event this month.
She said: “I would encourage residents to attend the drop-in session in Portskewett Church Hall to enable them to understand what is being put forward for Portskewett and exercise their powers and responsibilities as citizens by sharing their views with Monmouthshire County Council officers.”
The council is currently seeking the views of residents on its future planning blueprint, the Local Development Plan, which will be used to guide where new housing and sites for employment should be located across the county until 2033.
The council has identified three preferred locations which includes the Showground site, which is currently the David Broome Equestrian Event Centre named after the Olympic showjumping medalist, to the north of Portskewett and south of Crick.
The others are in Chepstow, where 145 houses could be built over the next 10 years, and Abergavenny, which is considered to have the potential for 500 new homes during the plan period.
It aims to provide between 1,660 to 2,200 new homes, including 830 to 1,100 affordable homes, through to 2033, with most concentrated on the preferred sites in Caldicot East, Abergavenny and Chepstow. Other areas, put forward as candidate sites, for smaller housing allocations will also be considered.
The Caldicot East site could, it’s thought, provide an additional 535 new homes beyond 203,3 making a total of 1,460 while the Abergavenny site could accommodate 135 after the end of the plan period.
Cllr Dymock voted against the plan when it was approved for consultation by the full council in December.
She was one of four Conservative councillors to do so, with most of the opposition group abstaining. The council’s Labour deputy leader Paul Griffiths said the vote gave approval to move forward to the public consultation and the plan will continue to change throughout the process.
In December Cllr Dymock said the village has already seen a development of some 500 new homes at Crick Road and the plan would increase the number of properties by 60 per cent.
She said: “Portskewett does not want to lose its identity as a village or the green fields it’s proposed to build on.”
She also said Caldicot isn’t currently able to accommodate more housing: “Caldicot is a declining town centre and needs vital investment before we can encourage more people to the area.”
Cllr Dymock said she understands there is “great demand for housing” but still believes the area isn’t able to cope with a significant number of new homes.
She said: “There is considerable concern around road, community facilities, health, and education infrastructure to serve the current residents, where we have seen considerable development within this small ward to date, without the proposal for more than 900 houses for this small village.”
The council’s next consultation drop in is at Portskewett Church Hall on Tuesday, January 17 from 2pm to 7pm. It will also be holding drop ins at Caldicot Choir Hall on Wednesday, January 18 and at Raglan Village Hall on Thursday January 19, also from 2pm to 7pm.
The deadline for submitting comments on the plan is midnight on Monday, January 30 and they can be sent to [email protected] or posted to Planning Policy, Monmouthshire County Council, County Hall, The Rhadyr, Usk, NP15 1GA. The council is encouraging people to send comments via email.
