Island Plan 2011: approval (P.48/2011): eighteenth amendment.

This content has been automatically generated from the original PDF and some formatting may have been lost. Let us know if you find any major problems.

Text in this format is not official and should not be relied upon to extract citations or propose amendments. Please see the PDF for the official version of the document.

PDF version

STATES OF JERSEY

ISLAND PLAN 2011: APPROVAL (P.48/2011): EIGHTEENTH AMENDMENT

Lodged au Greffe on 21st April 2011 by Deputy P.V.F. Le Claire of St. Helier

STATES GREFFE

2011 Price code: B P.48 Amd.(18)

ISLAND PLAN 2011: APPROVAL (P.48/2011): EIGHTEENTH AMENDMENT

PAGE 2 –

After the words "the revised draft Island Plan 2011" insert the words "except that –

there be added to the list of sites to be zoned for Category A housing at Policy H1: Category A housing sites (on page 246):

4. Field 1248, Highview Lane, St. Helier (approx 3 acres/7 vergées)';

the revised draft Island Plan 2011 be further amended in such respects as may be necessary consequent upon the adoption of (a);
the Proposals Map be amended to reflect the adoption of (a).".

DEPUTY P.V.F. LE CLAIRE OF ST. HELIER

NOTE:

The consequential amendments would include amendments to Proposal 17: Provision of homes (page 242), Table 6.3: Supply of homes 2011 – 2020 (page 238), and Table 6.4: Net housing supply 2011 – 2020 (page 239) be amended accordingly to reflect the potential additional yield of Category A homes from the zoning of this site; and there may be others.

REPORT

The need for social rented housing and first-time buyer homes cannot be underestimated. There are rising numbers on the Housing Department's list for the former, and there are no new sites likely to emerge for first-time buyers in the foreseeable future. As far as I am aware, there are currently no plans to develop the remaining 2 Island Plan H2 sites in the near future.
Field 1248 was identified and approved by the States as a suitable site for Category A housing under Policy H3 of the 2002 Island Plan, subject to consultation. Policy H3 was added to the final draft of the Island Plan because the Housing Needs Survey published in early 2002 had identified that the draft Plan consulted upon in 2001 had insufficient provision for Category A housing. My concern is that the removal of 3 Category A sites from the draft Plan is likely to lead to a similar shortfall in the new Plan. That is why I am proposing that Field 1248 be designated as a Category A site.
The site had scored very highly in meeting the criteria of the 2002 Island Plan's spatial strategy. These were –

Integration with the Built-up Area;
Efficiency of use of land-use resources;
Accessibility;
Minimising environmental impacts;
Least constraints and ease of implementation; and
Equitable distribution of development impact.

In 2007, the Ministers for Housing and Planning and Environment invited the Connétable s to put forward sites for housing the elderly and first-time buyers. Field 1248 was put forward to 2 separate Parish Assemblies in St. Helier and was supported unanimously. Accordingly, it was included in the consultation process on sites for elderly persons and first-time buyer homes in 2007/8. The Minister did not put the site forward in P.75/2008, following objections from Deputy J.A. Hilton of St. Helier acting on behalf of local residents, based on loss of agricultural land and potential traffic generation.
In the autumn of 2008, a planning application was submitted to construct 28 first-time buyer and 26 social rented apartments for elderly persons on Field 1248. This was eventually refused permission on the grounds that it would prejudice the proposals in the Island Plan Review, and also that the States hadn't formally approved an amendment to the Island Plan. Appeal to the Royal Court was dismissed on the second ground of appeal only. My amendment affords the opportunity for the States Assembly to decide on the suitability of the site.

A new proposal has emerged to provide –

24 first-time buyer homes (4 x 4 bedroom and 20 x 3 bedroom);
21 social rental homes (10 x 2 bedroom cottages and 11 x 2 bedroom apartments).

The owner and prospective developer of the site have offered the Parish of St. Helier 10 social rental homes for free. If the Parish is not minded to accept them for some reason, then the value of the homes would be spread across the costs of developing the site (approx c. £1.6 million) and that would allow for the other homes to be sold at a lesser cost. This is exactly what the developer has said he feels is his contribution to the Island's needs. The Parish of St. Helier would benefit from having some sheltered housing, whereas at this time it has none. The Parish would also have an immediate income and a property portfolio worth £2 million. It would also reduce the pressures on other States Services by keeping the over-55s in the community where they belong, and not in a private nursing facility or in the General Hospital – potentially at great cost.