Where Can New Developments Go In Chichester District?

Wednesday, 7 October 2020 12:19

By John Warburton @Warblefly

Chichester District: southern half of the assessment so far

A list of sites for possible development for housing and business across Chichester District has been published by the local authority.

It's one step further in the review of the district's Local Plan.

The authority said the HELAA 2020 (Housing and Economic Land Availability Assessment) is a technical assessment which is updated on a regular basis and will be used as key evidence as part of the Local Plan Review.

The document is part of the initial stages when looking at potential sites for development.

According to the district council, its aim is to identify a future supply of land which is "suitable, available and achievable" for housing and economic development (such as employment, retail and leisure) over the plan period up to 2037.

Landowners have been invited to put forward details of areas of land that they think could be developed for housing or employment.

Once assessed and published in the HELAA, the council said it would further consider the sites so that the most sustainable sites are taken forward into the Local Plan Review.

Councillor Susan Taylor, the authority's deputy leader, said:

"We want to reassure people that while a site may be included in the HELAA, it doesn't mean it will be developed.

"This is a document which we as a council have to produce and which is regularly updated and then made available to the public.

"The HELAA helps us to ensure that both housing and employment is provided in the most appropriate locations and is one of many important technical documents that support and inform the preparation of the Local Plan Review.

"I would like to stress that the HELAA does not allocate sites and does not mean that planning permission for any site will be granted.

"It is there to ensure that only the most sustainable sites are taken forward for allocation in the Local Plan Review.

"Work on the Local Plan Review has been carrying on despite the current pandemic, and we continue to prepare all the relevant evidence needed for the review."

The HELAA can be viewed at: https://www.chichester.gov.uk/article/29759/Housing-and-Economic-Land-Availability-Assessment