55 homes and car park plan for old ministry depot site
Plans have been put forward for new housing estate and a car park on land next to a rail line near Lichfield.
Developers want to demolish the old Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (MAFF) buildings off Burton Road in Streethay, and replace them with 55 homes.
The scheme also includes a new car park for 82 vehicles to cater for users of the nearby Lichfield Trent Valley railway station.
A statement accompanying the plans from Network Rail says the site covers 2.1 hectares (5.2 acres), roughly half of which will be taken up by the new development.
It currently features two large redundant warehouse buildings which were part of the MAFF depot and will be demolished to make way for a mixture of two, three and four bedroom homes.
The statement says: "The proposal provides a housing mix that meets the local need and encourages a sustainable community.
"The car park provision will provide much needed parking security for future rail demand.
"The proposals have been progressed with the support of the local authority’s pre application advice and the scheme developed in close discussions with specialist consultants covering such areas as trees, transport and highways and flood risk.
"The design incorporates all these elements in order to deliver a high quality residential development and station car park.
"The development will respect the local area but also move the community towards a more sustainable future.
"The development will accord with the principles of high quality design and best practice to create a development that is sympathetic to its environment, and that will integrate well with the existing community.
"We, therefore, respectfully request that the council and its members support the proposed application."
The previous owner of the land was granted planning consent for 75 homes in 2003 but no scheme was ever brought forward.
Network Rail initially took over the site in 2004 and used it for offices as part of the West Coast Modernisation project.
It was later used for the storage of rail infrastructure until 2013, and contractors working on the new station building took it over the following year.
A Network Rail study in 2016 concluded that 78 new parking spaces were required to cater for demand at the station.
