Developer told they can't build more homes on ‘landslide’ Cradley Heath estate appeals decision
A developer has appealed a decision to block more homes from being built on an estate previously ‘cut off’ by a landslide.
Dunedin Homes, the developer behind the 53-home estate off Halesowen Road in Cradley Heath, was blocked from adding six more homes to the development by Sandwell Council last year.
The estate, which was completed in 2020, has been plagued by issues including several landslides that left a huge mound of earth blocking the road and cutting off a dozen homes.
The developer has appealed the decision to the government planning inspectors in a bid to get the ruling overturned.
The three-and-four-bed homes would be built on a patch of land previously used as a storage yard and haul road during the construction of the wider estate – around 150 metres away from Haden Cross Drive where landslides spilled over a retaining wall leaving several residents blocked in.
A total of 30 objections were made against the plans before Sandwell Council made a decision.
Rejecting the proposal, the council’s planners said: “The development would have a significant impact on privacy and overlooking of existing residential properties at lower land levels and would appear overly dominant and overbearing from the habitable rooms and gardens of these properties.
“The site layout would be cramped with poorly designed runs of parking to frontages and areas of communal bin stores.”
The local authority added the application did not “adequately recognise” the nearby nature reserve, wildlife corridor or conservation sites.
The subsidence in nearby Haden Cross Drive was first seen two years ago when a tree fell in the nearby woods.
Heavy rain and bad weather throughout the year came to a head in the run up to Christmas with a huge mound of earth leaving the road completely blocked.
The tonnes of soil left the cul-de-sac ‘cut off’ and homeowners without access to their driveways.
A statement included with the application said: “The site is in a sustainable location and relates well to the wider context to the site and has been designed with the aim of creating a vibrant and inclusive community.
“The proposal creates a high-quality residential development, set within an attractive open space setting, that will deliver high quality place-making whilst providing much needed new homes.”
