Flats to be built on top of library

The flats are to be build above the existing library and businesses

Plans for 15 new flats to be built above a library and shops in a town have been given the green light by a council.

Developer Camel Projects (Histon Ltd) wanted to build the one and two-bedroom flats in School Hill, Histon, in Cambridgeshire, and said it would "help bring vitality to the village".

There were more than 50 objections to the plans, and comments raised concerns it would add to the current parking issues in the town.

However, South Cambridgeshire District Council approved the application at a council meeting on Monday and said there was a need for the housing in the area.

The district council's conservation officer raised an objection and said the scale of the development would harm the conservation area and nearby heritage assets, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

Justin Bainton, representing the developer, said a car park, redesigned as part of the plans would "reduce pressure in the street car parking".

He pointed out that six of the flats were proposed to be made available as affordable housing and the scheme would provide homes for "the younger generation".

He also said the site was "highly sustainable" and that the proposed development would "enhance the virtual quality of the street scene to the benefit of the conservation area".

Speaking at the meeting, the council's Liberal Democrat cabinet member for planning, Dr Tumi Hawkins, said she understood the concerns raised by people in the village.

However, she said a decision needed to be based on a balance of the benefits and the harms, and that in her view the benefits outweighed the harms.

She said: "Those coming in behind us need and want somewhere to live, families are growing, I have got two kids and I want them to be able to find somewhere to live.

"It is a good thing to be able to do this and provide something like this in a sustainable location, which is what this is."

Councillors voted unanimously in favour of approving the application.