Bid for 'crowded' housing estate on car park near Gloucestershire railway station rejected

Plans to build a “crowded” five home estate on a car park near a Gloucestershire railway station have been rejected. Wain Homes has been refused permission by Stroud District Council to develop the 0.2 acre site in Box Road, Cam.

The proposed development site is surrounded by recently completed residential estate. And Councillor Chris Haynes (L, Cam West spoke against the proposals at the development control committee on July 9. He raised concerns over road safety and flooding in the area.

“The corner from Box Road to the A38 is quite dangerous,” he said. “I don't believe that road was rated for the level of lorry use and that weight of lorry.

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"That’s why there’s considerable damage and the road is always having to be dug up and repaired.” He said it was still a car park that had been used by rail users.

Cllr Haynes said he has friends nearby and has walked the area. “I can’t visualise how five houses are going to fit on it with any degree of space, garden or freedom. It’s a bit like the back to back I used to live in when I was a kid on a mining estate.”

Jo Kendall, who also spoke against the plans on behalf of Cam Community Action Group, said the scheme was “disingenuous profiteering and a simply wrong” application. “We have reports from many commuters across the area who have missed medical appointments in Bristol and Gloucester because they have not been able to find a safe parking space and have missed their train,” she said.

“Developers have unashamedly made a big thing of their proximity to the station in their glossy brochures to help sell their properties. We need the 20 car park spaces to future proof the station a lot more than Cam needs five more houses.”

John-Rhys Davies, speaking for the applicant, he said the car park was approved in 2018 as part of the development for 90 homes. “The difficulty we’ve had in transferring it. It's been a lengthy three year negotiation.

“It’s a liability nobody seems to want at the moment.” He said they conducted surveys at all times of the day in recent months and found no car parked in Box Road.

“I know there was parking on Box Road in 2019 but in the post Covid context we have looked and there are spaces available.”

Officers recommended refusing planning permission due to the loss of the overflow car park and said on balance, the modest benefits of the application proposal are significantly outweighed by its lack of justification and compliance with planning policies.

Councillor Mark Ryder (C, Hardwicke) proposed rejecting the scheme and this was seconded by Cllr Gary Luff (G, Painswick and Upton). Cllr Luff said losing the car park would be a bad thing for the district.

And Cllr Ryder said: “Parking is the outcome we are looking for. Hopefully that will come forward for that site voluntarily as a result of this decision.” The committee voted unanimously to refuse planning permission.