News Planning process slammed as 'bureaucracy gone barmy'
The East Riding of Yorkshire Council's planning process has come under heavy fire this week, with one resident describing the methods of informing residents about a new estate off Maple Walk as 'bureaucracy gone barmy' and the Environment Agency claiming householders have ignored warnings about flooding.
The resident, who asked not to be named, said he and his neighbours received a letter from the ERYC dated November 16 informing them that an application by Ben Bailey Homes for 45 houses near Maple Walk had been withdrawn.
So they were amazed when construction work started on the site last week, waking up at least two residents who had been working nights and forcing parents and children to walk the long way round to Kingsway Primary School. Normally, they would take a shortcut across the site, which has now been fenced off.
"Everyone had their kids late to school," he said and, referring to the noise: "If I'd known about the work, I could have changed my shifts but it's too late now."
It seems that developers Ben Bailey Homes have submitted two applications, and the second one, for 54 houses, has been approved - hence the work starting.
However, our contact is angry that he was told about the development that was not going ahead, and not about the one which is.
"It's bureaucracy gone barmy," he said. "It's absolute nonsense."
A spokesperson for the ERYC said that the site had a 'complex planning history.'
"Ben Bailey Homes had an application in abeyance for several years until fairly recently. This application was withdrawn and people who had sent in a letter about it were notified," he said.
"Another application by Ben Bailey Homes was submitted more recently and was approved by the planning committee on July 27.
"Again, people who had made written comments were notified of the decision."
However, our contact insists that he would have commented on any application for housing on the site - because of the flood risk.
The Millennium Way area is notorious for flooding: just this August, the Goole Times reported that Bob Matthews (then 93) had to be carried out of his flat on Delamere Walk after it was flooded for the fourth time since he has lived there. He has now been rehoused.
Other residents have also been flooded and our contact cannot understand why permission for more houses has been granted.
"We want a guarantee that we won't be flooded by the new development," he said.
"The water's got nowhere to go now."
A spokesperson for the ERYC said: "As part of the consultation process, the council asked the Environment Agency for its view. The EA said it had no objection to the application as long as the floor levels of the houses were at least 3m above sea level.
"Council officers then recommended the application for approval, with the minimum floor level one of the conditions of approval, and the planning committee subsequently approved it."
ERYC under fire on flood advice
Meanwhile, the ERYC have been caught up in a battle with the Environment Agency (EA), who last Thursday published a report looking at whether flood risk advice is taken on board by local authorities.
The report states that the ERYC approved an application for 14 dwellings at the Adelphi Warehouse site on Hook Road, despite the fact that it is in a flood plain and, according to the Environment Agency, "may increase the flood risk to people and property on the site and in the surrounding area.
"The Local Planning Authority approved the application without a Flood Risk Assessment or reconsulting with the Environment Agency," it said.
However, the ERYC strongly denies this and told the Goole Times that a relevant condition had been put on the planning approval.
The council also claims it is the second time they have been wrongly accused.
"The first report of this kind was published in February, 2006 without any contact with the council," a spokesperson said.
"Following that report the Agency was forced to apologise to the council for wrongly naming the authority, but it was only some three months later, following further representations by the council, that its report, published on the Environment Agency website, was corrected.
"The council is therefore extremely concerned that another report has now been published which, in the council's view, incorrectly cites this council.
"The latest report refers to an application for outline consent for residential development in Goole. The Environment Agency's objection was taken into account in determining the application by the inclusion of conditions attached to the consent.
"The ERYC will now be seeking a meeting with the chairman and chief executive of the Environment Agency in order to obtain an apology and assurances that no incorrect or inappropriate information is in future included in the Agency's reports."
Martin Slater at the Environment Agency said: "We objected to the plans on Hook Road, Goole, because the site lies within a high-risk flood plain and therefore may increase flood risk to people and property.
"We are disappointed that following our objection the council did not reconsult and granted planning permission. In this case we believe there was a relatively simple solution that could have been agreed."
Published on 14th December 2006 in News.
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