Developer appeals decision to refuse 53 homes in Harrogate

Last updated Apr 16, 2024

A property developer has launched an appeal after its bid to build 53 homes in Harrogate was refused.

Councillors on North Yorkshire Council’s Harrogate and Knaresborough planning committee rejected plans for the homes off Knox Lane in the Bilton area in September last year.

Now Teesside developer Jomast has appealed to the government’s Planning Inspectorate, which means the council faces a potentially costly legal battle.

Jomast’s appeal form indicates it has opted for an inquiry rather than a hearing or written representations.

It expects the inquiry to last four days and to call witnesses in the fields of planning, highways, design, landscape and ecology

The document says the 3.2-hectare site is owned by the Greenbank family near Boroughbridge.

The council must now decide whether to contest the appeal.

It is the latest round in the long running campaign to build homes off Knox Lane, which has been fiercely resisted by local people.

The site earmarked for houses.

A 45-page report by council case officer Andy Hough before last September’s planning meeting said the application was “considered to now be in compliance with development plan policy” and should be approved.

But councillors cited concerns about land contamination and the lack of a travel plan to go against Mr Hough’s recommendation. The site is alongside a narrow cul-de-sac and not close to a bus route.

Cllr Paul Haslam, who represents Bilton and Nidd Gorge, spoke on behalf of residents at the meeting. He said:

“There have been over 500 objections to this application from residents. Not because they are ‘nimbys’, but because they believe the council is making a mistake.”