Hambledon Parish Council has agreed to support the proposal to build a country house estate on the site of the former Nutbourne Brickworks at Roundals Lane, subject to satisfactory legal advice on a covenant it has been offered by the developers.
The majority of villagers who expressed an opinion on the planning application by Millgate Homes urged the parish council to support the proposal.
The priority for parish councillors was to obtain the best possible outcome for Hambledon and they made it clear to the developers that many issues had to be examined before such support could be forthcoming. As a result Millgate came back to the parish council with a significant concession. It would transfer a piece of Nutbourne land to the parish which would be given the benefit of a covenant restricting building on the neighbouring development site to one large country house and further restrict its use to that of a single-occupancy home. However, Millgate made the offer conditional to the parish council agreeing to support its application. This condition was unacceptable to councillors.
On the eve of a parish meeting on Wednesday (November 17th) when the council was to agree its response to Waverley Borough Council, the local planning authority, Millgate came back to state that it had removed the condition and was prepared to pay £5,000 towards the parish council’s costs of having the covenant legally assessed. The terms of the covenant met the wishes of the majority of villagers who had commented on the proposal, especially those living closest to the site. The parish council agreed that it could support the proposal, but only on the strict condition that it was satisfied with the outcome of legal advice, yet to be obtained, on the extent, terms and enforceability of the covenant. The council also attached an annex to its submission to Waverley which points out that the proposal should be considered by the planning authority against the fact that the site is in the Green Belt and an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty where, unless exceptional circumstances are proven, development is not permitted.
The annex also raises issues about public access the 220-acre sites, which includes ancient woodland, and whether it could be used for further clay extraction and brick making if the application for a country house and ancillary buildings fails. The brickworks closed in 1990.
The council also asks if, whatever the outcome, could the dilapidated and dangerous former brickworks buildings by removed within 12 months. No decision on the application is expected until the New Year. It has been reported that Millgate has a customer for the multi-million pound estate who is attracted to the site because of its privacy, landscape and the rare opportunity to design and build a mansion house from foundations up.
The full text of the letter to Waverley and its annex can be seen on this website HERE.
More details of the planning proposal can be found on the website news section and all documents, plans and drawings related can be viewed here: www.waverley.gov.uk