Woodbridge Town Council has added its voice to the growing opposition to the Melton Hill development.

The council’s planning committee met on Tuesday night and discussed the application, known locally as the Cheese Wedges.

During the meeting, which was attended by over 20 residents, members of the committee voted unanimously against the proposals.

The council say their concerns lie in the amount of affordable housing being offered by the new plans.

The revised application, submitted a few weeks ago, has been submitted, reduced the number of affordable homes in the development from 32 to 15 by claiming Vacant Building Credit (VBC) – a scheme introduced nationally to promote brownfield development.

Developers Active Urban Woodbridge Limited’s application said it had “concerns about the scheme’s viability” – but these could be overcome by VBC.

It’s not the first time that the council has expressed its disapproval of the plans for the former Suffolk Coastal offices.

The council had previously urged the District Council to turn down the initial application by the developers.

In 2017 the council also wrote to the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government at the time Sajid Javid and asked for the application to be ‘called in’.

The request was not granted.

Woodbridge mayor David Mortimer said: “Woodbridge is a Town for all age groups.

“We need to ensure that we have a mix of housing to suit everybody. We are in real need of more affordable housing to supply the right accommodation for families and key workers that we need to keep the Town vibrant.

“At our meeting on Tuesday, many members of the community attended and spoke with passion against the application and proposed development. Not one member of the public who attended was in favour of the plans.

“We strongly urge the District Council to listen to residents and refuse this application.”

There are currently 98 comments from residents on the application. Of these 98 comments, two are neutral and one supports the application. The others are all objections.

The consultation on the plans will end on September 11.