'Mega' Thrapston warehouse development approved at appeal despite huge opposition from residents
A government-appointed planning inspector has allowed an appeal for a large warehousing development near Thrapston, despite hundreds of members of the public opposing the plans.
The large logistics site was referred to the planning inspectorate earlier this year after NNC failed to issue a decision on the plans for three years.
A 10-day public inquiry into the plans was launched in July, hearing from the developer Equites Newlands Ltd, North Northamptonshire Council (NNC) and local campaign group Save Titchmarsh, Thrapston And Upper Nene Valley Countryside & Habitats (STAUNCH).
Now approved, the employment site will see 200,000 sqm of warehousing built on green space known as Castle Manor Farm, next to Haldens Parkway along the A14.
Developers say the scheme will create about 2,700 jobs, bring in more than £4 million in annual business rates and meet a need for logistics in the area.
A spokesman for STAUNCH said: “It is with a heavy heart that we must report that the appeal by Newlands Developments in relation to the mega warehouse development on the Castle Manor Farm site has been upheld by the Planning Inspectorate.
“Throughout the process, STAUNCH has worked tirelessly to represent the communities of Thrapston, Titchmarsh and wider Upper Nene Valley and we believe that we presented the best possible case that we could. None of which we could have undertaken without your full support.”
‘Catastrophic consequences’
Former Corby & East Northamptonshire MP Tom Pursglove said that STAUNCH had been ‘desperately let down’ with the decision disregarding concerns over the local plan, habitat, heritage and rare species regulations.
“This decision will have catastrophic consequences and destroy trust locally in the planning regime,” he added.
Members of the public made more than 800 comments, most of which were objections, on the original plans to NNC. More than 100 local residents also attended a public-focused hearing during the inquiry to put their pleas directly to the inspector to dismiss the scheme.
In a 69-page document, planning inspector R Catchpole weighed up the potential benefits and harms of the scheme. He said the main issues he considered were the effect on the character and appearance of the surrounding area, the effect on protected buildings and heritage assets, if there would be an adverse effect on the Upper Nene Gravel Pits Special Protection Area, and whether there is an established employment and logistics need locally.
He wrote that there were benefits of the development that would make a ‘substantial contribution’ to the local area, including a significant capital investment of around £120m in the local economy, new employment opportunities and the provision of training and skills initiatives.
However, he noted a number of harms, including the approval undermining a plan-led approach that aims to build logistics and major employment development in growth towns, adverse effects on the countryside, and the loss of the best and most versatile land and historic hedgerows.
The inspector concluded: “In the final balance, I regard the significant benefits of the proposed development sufficient to outweigh any degree of policy conflict with respect to a plan-led approach, landscape, heritage and BMV. On this basis, I conclude that planning permission is justified.
“It follows that the adverse impacts of granting the permission sought in this appeal would not significantly and demonstrably outweigh the benefits when assessed against the policies of the Framework taken as a whole.”
An application from Equites Newlands for an award of costs due to the council acting ‘unreasonably’ was refused by the inspector, who found that the planning committee members were within their right to reach a different conclusion than the council officers who recommended approval.
A full application was submitted for the first unit in the southwestern corner of the site, with all matters reserved apart from access for the remaining plots. The warehousing unit is expected to be inhabited by logistics company DHL.
As the permission is hybrid, detailed plans for the remaining storage and distribution zone , with units up to 24m tall, will come forward at a later date.