PROPOSALS to build 134 homes and a children's nursery on land at Farnham Hospital hang in the balance, with Waverley's development control committee set to determine the controversial planning application next Tuesday. The proposals, submitted by the Guildford and Waverley Primary Care Trust for the land left surplus following the building of the new hospital, failed to receive the green light from the council's western area development control sub-committee in February, despite a recommendation to give the go-ahead from planning officers. Parking and traffic issues proved the main stumbling block in the sub-committee's view, and councillors also felt that the drawings provided failed to show that a satisfactory development could be achieved on the site with regard to the relationship to its surroundings, the number of units and the environment it would create. In recommending that planning consent be granted, planning officers had put forward a long list of conditions to be agreed by the developer. These included that 40 per cent on the new homes - a total of 54 - be "affordable dwellings". Of these, half would be allocated to essential workers and half to people on the council's housing needs register. Further conditions included contributions of £8,823 towards the improvement of football pitches at Weybourne Recreation Ground, £98,061 towards the refurbishment of Farnham Sports Centre and nearly £150,000 to Surrey County Council towards education provision in the locality. Farnham Town Council and local residents are strongly opposed to the plan, believing that an increase in traffic will add to existing problems, especially as other large developments are looming at Bourne Mill and East Street. However, Surrey County Council, as highway authority, confirmed that traffic from these other developments should not be taken into account as no planning applications have yet been submitted for them. If the development goes ahead, a new signal- controlled junction at Hale Road, Manor Road and Haven Way will be paid for by the developer and the existing bus layby will be replaced by an on-street bus stop closer to the hospital entrance. The nursery, which it is proposed will be operated by the NHS, and 29 of the homes, would be accessed from Guildford Road.
