An application to build 69 retirement apartments with additional care facilities near St James Retail Park in Knaresborough has been refused.
Harrogate Borough Council‘s planning committee voted overwhelmingly to reject the bid yesterday. Eleven councillors refused and one abstained.
Adlington, part of the Gladman group, applied to build on land adjacent to the single-track Grimbald Bridge on Wetherby Road, alongside the River Nidd.
Adlington has built similar developments for retired people across the north of England, including Adlington House on Bridge Street in Otley.
Cllr Phil Ireland, who sits on both Knaresborough Town Council and Harrogate Borough Council, said the plans would increase traffic and air pollution for children walking to Aspin Park Academy primary school.
He said:
“The size and scale of the development is overpowering. The visual intrusion will be evident to all entering Knaresborough.”
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Robert Gaskell, planning manager for Adlington, said new retirement complexes were “critical” to the Harrogate district as they helped to release existing homes back into the housing market.
He added:
“The accommodation brings a social life that combats isolation and loneliness. In the context of current lockdown, this is surely something to be supported.”
Several councillors raised concerns about flooding, including Sue Lumby, who said elderly residents would not “be able to make a quick getaway” if the Nidd flooded.
However, Nick Turpin, the council’s planning manager, said officers were satisfied the development would have “minimum risk” of flooding.
The development was proposed be built to the left of Grimbald Bridge on Wetherby Road.
Grimbald Bridge is a pressure point for congestion and the proposals faced objections from both Knaresborough Civic Society and Knaresborough Town Council on transport grounds.