Business park voted down despite advice to approve

A proposal for a new business park near the Silverstone race circuit has been rejected by councillors

An industrial site proposed by a developer has been rejected by a council, following 570 objections from the public.

Clowes Developments applied to West Northamptonshire Council (WNC) for permission for the facility on greenfield land at Shacks Barn Farm, east of Silverstone Business Park.

According to an indicative plan, the site could have been split up into as many as 24 units with a range of uses including offices, storage and distribution.

Ross Middleton, on behalf of Clowes Developments, said: "What you are delivering is a site that the council itself has planned for, tested and has allocated. The market evidence shows exceptionally strong demand in this area."

Plans detailed the units at the proposed business development

The project was forecast to generate about 500 full-time jobs, with the construction representing an investment of more than £40m.

Illustrative plans said the heights of the buildings would be between 9.5m (31ft) and 16m (52ft) tall, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

A report for the authority's strategic planning committee advised members to approve the application.

However, the panel reached a different view after listening to evidence from the planning officer and a number of public speakers who objected to the development.

A solicitor representing some local residents told members the development had been "hijacked" by large warehouses, and the original allocation for the development was meant for small units and local businesses.

Resident Karen Lockton said: "You already know that the visual impact will be unacceptable, you already know that the site has no hope for sustainable access.

"Warehouses bring the wrong sort of employment for the area and will not bring an economic boost to the region."

West Northants councillor Ian McCord, Independent, appealed to fellow councillors to reject the plans, pointing to constraints with pedestrian and cycle access to the site and traffic changes.

Planning officers told members that all of the proposed units sat firmly within the small and medium size grouping, and the site allocation policy that was previously approved expressly allowed warehouse and storage use on the site.

After indicating they were not supportive of the plans, planning officers advised members that the "most defendable" reason for refusal would be councillors' concerns about the enforceability of the condition that required the footpath and cycleway links to be completed post permission.

The committee voted to refuse the employment hub plans, with 10 against the development and one abstention.