Residents' relief as 68 Delancey homes rejected

The plans were supported by planning officers, even though they did not meet all planning criteria, but political members of the DPA were particularly concerned about traffic and road safety around the Pointues Rocques site at Delancey.

They turned down the plans – which have been awaiting permission for four years – as they said mitigation had not been appropriately considered to assure the safety of people, particularly school pupils, walking through the road sites at peak times.

DPA members Deputies Andrew Taylor, Sasha Kazantseva-Miller and Bob Murray all turned down the plans, while Deputies John Dyke and president Victoria Oliver opted to defer a verdict.

‘I wasn’t expecting that outcome, I thought it would have been either deferred or accepted,’ Deputy Oliver, who raised several concerns of her own, said after the four-hour hearing.

Delancey Conservation Committee lead resident Carmen Wheatley lives in one of the protected buildings near to the proposed site. She said she had hoped and expected the proposals would be rejected.

‘I think an intelligent position was taken by the deputies,’ said Mrs Wheatley.

‘It was a very measured response from them, while the planners didn’t have any experts.’

She said that members of the committee had conducted their own traffic assessment in the area.

‘Two years ago the committee sat on every corner near the area between 7.30 and 9.30am, and we just sat there and watched,’ she said.

‘We did it free of charge and obtained common sense information. If the committee sat and did the same thing, then the truth would out, but they’ve been relying on outsiders.

‘[In that time] there were 673 vehicles that went through, five people walking and three cyclists – every mother taking their child to school was driving.’

Prior to the meeting there had been 118 formal representations against the plans.

They cited concerns for wildlife and habitats, flooding for nearby residences, traffic and road safety and historical buildings and structures that may be impacted on or demolished if the plans were to go ahead.

Some 24 individual representations were presented at the meeting, mainly residents of the area and St Sampson’s parish officials, with just four in favour of the proposals.

Those in favour of the proposals were Guernsey Housing Association chief executive Steve Williams, PF+A director Peter Falla and architect Doug Langlois, and legal adviser Andrew Laws, who was representing the applicant landowner.

They argued for the need for affordable housing and the fact that the land had been officially prioritised as a housing allocation site since 2016.