YEOVIL'S northern edge could creep further into the surrounding countryside if plans for new homes are approved.
Gladman Developments and the Somerset Community Foundation have put forward joint plans for 60 new homes on Tintinhull Road, between the Brimsmore Garden Centre and the Yeovil Gospel Hall.
The development, coupled with two others nearby, would see the northern edge of the town continue to expand towards the neighbouring village of Chilthorne Domer, which itself is currently subject to various development efforts.
Somerset Council will make a final decision on these latest proposals in the spring.
The planned development site lies to the west of a previous approved Gladman development of 185 homes, with the two sites being separated by Coppits Hill Lane.
The plans for 185 homes were approved by councillors in October 2022 following a lengthy delay as a result of the phosphates crisis, with a new waste water treatment plant being constructed on site to mitigate the environmental impact of the new homes.
A new access road onto Tintinhull Road will serve the planned new development of 60 homes – which will be opposite the eastern edge of the Brimsmore key site, where Wyatt Homes has permission to deliver more than 900 new homes, along with a new primary school, sports pitches and other community facilities.
Of the 60 new homes planned for this site, 21 will be affordable – meeting the council’s target for 35 per cent affordable housing for any new development of ten homes or more.
A spokesman for FPCR (representing the applicants) said: “We wish to create a distinctive and high-quality place, which respects and enhances the character and assets of Yeovil while ensuring connectivity with the existing community.
“This development provides much-needed housing, bringing new residents and potentially a wider demographic to the area, and is located a ten-minute walk away from a number of local shops and facilities.
“Our design retains the majority of existing vegetation, and creates publicly accessible green space which enhances and reinforces the existing site
features, through new woodland, trees and hedgerow planting, combining to
provide green breathing spaces for the residential development.”
If approved, the development will extend the northern edge of Yeovil closer towards the neighbouring village of Chilthorne Domer – where two major developments are currently being mooted.
Magna Housing applied in January 2022 for permission to build 28 homes on Vagg Lane, north of the now-defunct Carpenters Arms pub.
Land Allocation Ltd. is currently fighting to secure permission for 73 homes on Tintinhull Road, having lodged in appeal with the Planning Inspectorate in August.
Yeovil’s north-eastern edge will also be expanding out into the neighbouring parishes in the coming years, with 765 homes being delivered on the Mudford urban extension site (to the east of the A359 Mudford Road), along with commercial space, a care home and an extension to the Primrose Lane Primary School.
A further 252 homes could also be delivered on the western side of the A359, depending on the outcome of a planning inquiry which will be held some time in 2024.
Somerset Council is expected to make a decision on the Tintinhull Road proposals in the early-spring.
It is not currently clear whether this decision will be taken in public by its planning committee south (which handles major applications in the former South Somerset area) or through the delegated powers of its planning officers.
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