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114 new homes would ruin Dorset village DORSET councillors claim proposals for more than 100 extra homes on the edge of a north Dorset village would overwhelm the community and ruin its rural character. Dorset Council’s northern area planning committee has rejected an outline application for up to 114 homes on a triangular site south of Lower Road, Stalbridge. Cllr Graham Carr Jones, ward councillor for the area, says the debate illustrates how the failure to meet government land supply targets has put the area at the mercy of developers, rather than local people. Although councillors voted unanimously against the proposal in principal the decision is already out of their hands and will be decided by a planning inspector at a hearing expected to be held in April.
A HOMES scheme for the former North Dorset district council site at Norden, Blandford will be built – but without a guarantee all 40 will be ‘affordable.’ Dorset councillors were told that, legally, the council is unable to enforce the 100per cent affordable home pledge made by developer, Aster. Senior planning officer Robert Lennis said that the best the council can achieve is a legal agreement for around a third of the homes. He said that anything more would cause problems for Aster in gaining funding from Homes England for the development. Planning officers say they are confident that the housing group will keep to its promise despite the concerns of several councillors at its Northern Area planning committee on Tuesday.