Work to start on major homes plan

Story Homes has started work on site in preparation for a development of close to 120 new homes near Kirkham.

The project, on land off Blackpool Road, will bring 117 new homes to the town, with the first properties due to be released for sale this spring.

Work is now under way on site, including preparation of the new roads and sewerage required for the development.

Around 30 per cent of the properties will be affordable homes, but Kirkham Coun Elaine Silverwood said she had “mixed emotions” about the scheme, adding she had concerns about the properties being built on land and outside the town’s settlement boundary.

She told The Gazette: “It is an interesting one.

“We fought the original application when it came to the development but now we have to be pragmatic.

“We have to get the best for Kirkham.

“We have worked closely with the planners to ensure we get the landscaping and parts there which are best for Kirkham.”

The development is a mixture of two, three, four and five bed homes, with 14 different house types on offer, including apartments, terraced, semi-detached and detached homes.

A spokesman for Story Homes said the project would provide huge opportunities in the area. He added: “Other benefits the new development will bring include job creation and opportunities both directly and indirectly for local suppliers and contractors and local businesses and services.

“The development will bring around £10m of investment to the local area over the lifetime of the build phase.”

But Coun Silverwood said: “I don’t really see where a figure like £10m comes from. I still believe we are here to protect our countryside and fields.

“I accept we need houses but are they going up in the right places?

“We should be looking at brownfield sites.

“It is a difficult one again when they make statements and figures. The homes are on a bypass, too.

“We are worried about the safety of where it is – I still worry about that.

“I hope the people who move to the properties look to spend their money in Kirkham rather than elsewhere.

“At the end of the day we just want the best for everyone.”