Bovey Tracey council urges developer to fix phase one issues before 107 new homes are built

Bovey Tracey Town Council has called for phase one commitments to be honoured before a developer builds a further 107 homes on an existing estate.

Councillors at the Planning and Environment Committee meeting on Monday, June 8, highlighted undelivered commitments at the Longston Cross estate, including allotments and a cycle and pedestrian link connecting residents to the wider town.

A resident who has lived on the development for the past four years told councillors that residents were frustrated by delays to the adoption of roads and the lack of a ‘traffic-free short-cut’ to Brimley Vale.

Speaking during public participation, the resident said the missing link was preventing safer access to other parts of the town.

"The young people of Langston Cross want to use the facilities at the cricket club," he told members.

"To make them go round the long way, what are we waiting for, a serious accident or fatality?"

The resident also raised concerns about a lack of progress on allotment provision associated with the development and urged councillors to ask Teignbridge District Council to determine the application through its planning committee rather than under delegated officer powers.

Bovey Tracey’s town councillors echoed several of the concerns raised.

Cllr Eoghan Kelly described proposals for the next phase of the development being served by a single access road as "dangerous", while Cllr Sue Simmons questioned the ‘very weak’ sustainability features of the scheme.

Concerns were expressed about the absence of measures such as solar panels and air source heat pumps.

Following further debate, councillors agreed not to object to the application but resolved to resubmit previous observations regarding infrastructure delivery and request that outstanding Phase 1 commitments be completed before further construction begins.

In response, Devonshire Homes told The Moorlander that the first phase of Longston Cross was now in its final stages.

A spokesperson said: "Longston Cross is already established as a vibrant community and we are in the final stages of completing works on the first phase of this popular development in Bovey Tracey."

The developer acknowledged delays to road surfacing works on the estate.

"We recognise that there have been delays in getting the road surface completed and we apologise for the inconvenience this caused," the spokesperson said.

"Drainage works were required ahead of this taking place, and we can confirm these have been completed this week. It is expected that final road finishings should be carried out in July."

Addressing concerns over the pedestrian and cycle link to Brimley Vale, Devonshire Homes said the route could not be completed until adjacent self-build plots had been developed.

"The current market conditions have meant that these plots have not yet found self-build purchasers," the spokesperson said.

"However, we are exploring the possibility of carrying out some work in this area that can facilitate pedestrian access, only on an informal basis, ahead of the two plots being sold and built."

The company also disputed concerns about the pace of allotment provision, stating that planning requirements link the ten allotments to the second phase of the development.

"The planning requirements for delivery of the ten allotments are associated with phase 2 of the development," the spokesperson said.

"The plan for allotments must be submitted and approved by the 50th open market occupation in this phase, which means delivery of the plan is unlikely for at least another year at the earliest."

The application for 107 additional homes remains pending consideration by Teignbridge District Council, with no decision date announced.