07:00 15 December 2015
The medieval village of Kersey
(c) copyright citizenside.com
Opposition against plans for six new houses in a Suffolk village found support from its parish council when it objected to the plans last week.
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Developer Andy Harding wants to build six two-bedroom houses on land to the rear of The Street to help fill an “imbalance of housing in Kersey”.
He said: “There has been a lot of houses lost in Kersey over the last 30 years. The numbers of houses and families has dropped because smaller cottages have been knocked into one bigger house.
“Once you take away rented housing stock it doesn’t get replaced. What we are trying to do is put that right.”
However, several residents have opposed the application, and Kersey Parish Council voted unanimously against the plans at a meeting last Monday.
John Hume, parish council chairman, said it was considered that the development would cause “significant harm” to the nature of the medieval village, and was located too close to a row of Grade II*-listed cottages.
“We decided not to support the application because of the harm that would be caused to the historic buildings and conservation area,” he said. “We believe it far outweighs the public benefit of rented houses. We did agree that there seems to be support for affordable housing in Kersey, and the parish council said they would consider this further.”
Kersey resident Andy Hazell said he thought the council was missing a prime opportunity to provide housing attractive to younger couples and families.
“I was shocked and saddened for the village over how people reacted,” said Mr Hazell. “To me, the parish council should have a moral duty to encourage young families in the village and not just cater for the retired. A balanced community is needed for the good and the health of the village.
“When you build in the centre of a village there will be buildings nearby, and it will be in a conservation area.
“The village is stagnating as far as I’m concerned. It will be a gain for the village to bring young villagers.”
Mr Hazell added that the three-bedroom house he was born in, in Church Street, had increased in value from £75,000 in 1999 to £312,000 this year, which he said demonstrated the need for smaller, lower cost housing in Kersey.
The Suffolk Preservation Society, Babergh Heritage Officer and Historic England have all made objections against the proposal.
Babergh District Council is due to make a formal decision on the plans by December 26.