Development for 64 homes on Haywards Heath's Harlands Road car park approved

The application from Frontier Estates to clear the Harlands Road car park and build the four-to-seven-storey block was given the nod by the planning committee on Thursday (August 10).

The site had been considered by the committee before, with previous planning permission for a four-storey block of 40 flats given in 2020.

There were concerns from some that this latest plan was too high, smacked of over-development and would be over-bearing to neighbouring homes and properties.

One neighbour mentioned the potential loss of light to nearby flats and told the meeting: “These apartments are our homes and we deserve the right to live in them and enjoy them.”

There was a suggestion from another member of the public that Frontier Estates had always intended to increase the number of flats once initial permission had been given for the 40 in 2020.

Another concern raised during the meeting was the lack of affordable housing included in the application.

While 48 one-bedroom and 16 two-bedroom flats will be built, none of them will be classed as affordable, with Frontier Estates instead paying a commuted sum of £155,458 to be used for affordable housing elsewhere.

Rex Whittaker (Con, East Grinstead Imberhorne) was one of several councillors who expressed their disappointment with the situation.

He said: “It rankles a lot with me – I’m not happy with that.”

Mr Whittaker added: “This district council has a proud policy of 30 per cent affordable housing that is known to all applicants on all schemes of all sizes.”

Chairman Christopher Phillips (Ind, Copthorne & Worth) shared the disappointment but told the meeting that an assessment had been carried out which said that, because the flats were so small, ‘they may not achieve the sales figure anticipated’.

But he added that the situation would be looked at again once 75 per cent of the flats were occupied and, if more profit than expected had been made, the council would get a 60 per cent cut.

Parking was the other main issue raised.

The block will include an underground car park and some outside spaces – a total of 41 spaces in all.

Haywards Heath Town Council describe the number as ‘totally inadequate and unrealistic’.

But West Sussex Highways raised no such objection.

A report to the committee said: “Given the town centre location that provides a realistic opportunity to travel by modes other than the private car, as well as the presence of comprehensive waiting restrictions on the adjacent highway network (controlling where any overspill car parking could take place), the reduced car parking provision is considered acceptable.”

In the end, the majority of councillors felt the benefits of the scheme outweighed the impact it would have and approved the plans by seven votes to two.

To view the application, log on to pa.midsussex.gov.uk and search for DM/22/0596.