OBJECTIONS have flooded in against plans to built 130 homes on the edge of a village.
Gladman Developments wants outline planning permission to build the new houses on farmland off Maldon Road, Hatfield Peverel.
The developer says it has worked hard to design a “logical, carefully considered extension” to the village and insists the proposals would help to meet a shortage of affordable homes in the district.
But 69 members of the public have submitted objections against the proposals, with many citing concerns about an increase in traffic and added pressure on infrastructure in the area.
In their objection letter, one resident in Maldon Road has warned the new development would make day-to-day living for existing and new residents ‘very difficult’.
They said: “Maldon Road is at full capacity and extremely dangerous for both pedestrians to walk along and homeowners living alongside.
“With no real solutions to improve village infrastructure, as a consequence a development of this size would only exasperate the situation further.”
There are also fears the scheme would set a precedent for future planning applications and encourage further development on the edge of the village.
More than 500 new homes are due to be built in Hatfield Peverel in the coming years, including 145 off Station Road.
The parish council has produced a neighbourhood plan in the hope it will curb the number of planning applications put forward for the area.
A neighbourhood plan is put together by residents and volunteers to show where and what kind of development they want to see in their area.
In its response to Gladman’s plans, the parish council has pointed out the 130-homes scheme is contrary to its neighbourhood plan and should be refused.
Councillors have also raised fears that the village is already set to be overpopulated due to the number of new houses being built.
In its objection letter, the parish council said: “Further housing developments can only exacerbate this situation.
“Irrespective of the application falling outside of the development boundary and into the countryside, the village does not have a high street and is served by sporadic clusters of shops and facilities, few of which are considered to be within walking distance of the site and consequently it must be concluded that new residents would become dependent on car travel.
“There needs to be adequate facilities and services available as required by the growing community.
“The inability to create more of these like doctors and schools results in outward flow of vehicles to access them elsewhere.”
Gladman would be required to make financial contributions towards infrastructure in the village if it obtained planning permission.
It says it would work with planning experts to calculate what financial contributions it would make to key services in Hatfield Peverel, such as schools and healthcare facilities.
Braintree Council will have the final say on the proposals.