Around 170 people got the first glimpse of plans for a new business park and housing development on the site of a former RAF airfield near Stanton yesterday.
Villagers were able to see the draft masterplan for a new business park and between 265 and 380 homes on the former RAF airfield at Shepherd’s Grove.
The masterplan area includes Shepherd’s Grove East and Shepherd’s Grove West as well as the undeveloped land between the two existing employment sites.
Developers Property Recycling Group (PRG) and Jaynic hosted the public exhibition at Stanton Community Village Hall.
Jim Thorndyke, borough councillor for Stanton ward, said the exhibition received a lot of interest from villagers.
“It was a good exercise,” he said. “I think they [the developers] got a lot of feedback from people, and we’ll see what comes out of it.
“I don’t think there are too many issues with the industrial part of the plans but I would say that you can’t plonk that many homes on that site without the infrastructure, and I think people would like to see the plans for that in more detail.”
The developers say the business park will create a significant number of new jobs, and all HGV traffic currently going through Stanton will be able to enter Shepherd’s Grove via a new roundabout junction on the A143, and a new access road into the heart of the area.
The new roundabout junction on the A143 will slow traffic in and out of Stanton and make the junction onto the A143 from Hepworth safer, according to the developers.
“There were questions about traffic,” Mr Thorndyke added. “Although we would lose the HGV traffic, I think people were concerned about the amount of car traffic through the village.”
New footpaths and cycleways will be installed running north/south through the area – linking the proposed business and residential sites and providing connections to Walsham Le Willows to the south and Hepworth to the north.
The developers may now make revisions to the plans prior to its consideration by West Suffolk Council.
Once approved, the masterplan will become supplementary planning guidance and a planning application for the scheme would be submitted before the end of 2019.
For further details, consultation questionnaire and a copy of the masterplan, visit www.shepherdsgrovestanton-masterplan.co.uk
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