Wrexham community feeling ‘very happy’ after appeal over plans for 82 homes is dismissed

Members of a Wrexham community are said to be feeling “very happy” after an appeal over plans for 82 new homes was dismissed.

Summerhill residents packed the public gallery at the town’s Guildhall in February to show their opposition to proposals to develop land on Top Road.

Their views were supported by members of Wrexham Council’s planning committee as the scheme was rejected because of concerns about road safety and the loss of green barrier land.

Macbryde Homes later appealed to the Planning Inspectorate in a bid to have the decision overturned.

However, inspector Kay Sheffield has this week rejected the appeal as she said allowing a development within the green barrier would be “inappropriate”.

The news has been welcomed by Gwersyllt west councillor Gwenfair Jones, who stood alongside her constituents in their objections.

The Plaid Cymru group member said: “Everybody’s really happy about it. It can’t go any further now because it’s been ongoing for years.
“I called a public meeting on it not long after I was elected in 2017.

“It’s been turned down before years ago and we’re very happy that the inspector’s seen sense.

“The land is like a border between Gwersyllt and Summerhill and it’s good agricultural land as well which would have been lost.”

The local authority’s chief planning officer had recommended the application for approval ahead of February’s meeting as he claimed it would in fact lead to road safety improvements.

A representative for Macbryde, Stuart Andrews, said the upgrades would be “significant”.

He added 20 out of the 82 proposed homes would be affordable and a financial contribution of almost £250,000 would be made to support nearby schools.

But while Ms Sheffield found there would not be a significant impact on the area’s roads, she ultimately backed the councillors’ decision.

In her report, she said: “The erection of 82 dwellings would result in a significant amount of built development which would fail to maintain the openness of the site.

“The location of the site on the edge of the settlement is significant in safeguarding the countryside from encroachment and in preventing the coalescence of Gwersyllt and Broughton.

“The evidence therefore leads me to conclude that the proposal would constitute inappropriate development within the green barrier which would also fail to maintain openness and conflict with the purposes of including land within it.”

By Liam Randall – BBC Local Democracy Reporter