Councillors viewed the proposals with caution

CROWBOROUGH Town Council gave its official response to the plans on Monday.

At an extraordinary council meeting, members looked at each site proposed for housing in turn.

The council disagreed that the whole area at Wealden District Council's Pine Grove offices should be used for housing, as planners had suggested, as that would mean the loss of the Waitrose car park and Bluebell Wood.

However, councillors said they would be happy to use 75 per cent of the land to the north of the Pine Grove offices for housing, with 45 per cent of those built being as affordable housing.

In Jarvis Brook, members did not want land at the Millbrook Industrial Estate or Palesgate Lane to be developed.

They did say, however, they would support 100 per cent of the land suggested at Jarvis Brook Waste Depot in Forest View being developed.

In the south east of Crowborough, where parcels of land the size of 48 football pitches have been put forward for housing, the council agreed to some of the proposals but had some concerns.

Members agreed to the idea of housing on land south of Tollwood Road and on two Luxford Lane sites, but not to the package suggested by the district council as a whole. Members were worried the area's infrastructure could not support more housing.

Town councillor George Moss, in charge of planning matters, said: "I'm sure everybody's aware of the constraints around Walshes Road. Any development around there can only burden Crowborough. Any one of these sites will bring further misery."

But councillors did agree that a contingency site at Luxford Farm in Eridge Road, would be a suitable option for housing, citing access to the A26, transport links and it being within walking distance from Crowborough.

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