THE first salvos were fired today (December 6) as Winchester residents grappled with suggestions on where homes might be built.

Winchester City Council is producing a district masterplan as part of its Local Development Framework (LDF), which will replace several existing documents, including the local plan.

Westminster has told councils to identify how they can meet housing targets, which the Government sets.

The Winchester district is facing around 12,000 new homes during the next 20 years.

Around half are expected to be near the M27. Elsewhere in the district, house-building rates will stay roughly the same as the previous two decades.

Local authorities are being warned that LDFs will be rejected if they do not identify enough housing sites.

City councillors have already ruled some out, including Micheldever Station.

Compton Down is also off limits, they said, after part was included in a hatched area in an earlier report showing where development was feasible.

The potential sites were unveiled on November 30. The council intends to consult residents in the new year, but some decided not to wait.

Around 20 attended the cross-party LDF committee which met at Winchester Guildhall today (December 6).

They included Chris Slattery from the Save Barton Farm Group. The greenfield site at Winchester is among those being considered.

"Barton Farm is not a sustainable option. The infrastructure needed to service such a development would change the character of Winchester," she said.

Other potential sites near the city include Pitt Down, Bushfield Camp and all or part of the Royal Winchester Golf Club.

Alan Weeks, of the Winchester City Residents Association, argued that Winchester should not extend its boundaries.

"What I want to see is the protection of the historic environment of the city and the enhancement of the quality of life," he said.

Cabinet member for housing, Cllr Tony Coates, said the district needed more affordable housing.

He added that 2,700 people were waiting for such properties, including many youngsters from the area.

"I don't know how many of these people are members of the Winchester City Residents Association - my feeling is none," he said.

Mr Weeks also argued that Westminster's housing targets should be challenged.

Cabinet member for planning, Cllr Keith Wood, who chairs the LDF committee, said they had to find enough sites.

"It's quite possible that the Government will say if you don't do it, we will'," he added.

Head of strategic planning, Steve Opacic, advised members that if the masterplan did not meet Westminster's targets then it would be rejected. In such a scenario, the local plan would soon become outdated, and it would be hard to control development, he said.

The official six-week consultation starts on Thursday, January 3, and several public workshops are planned.

Each will last from 7pm to 9pm, with the first at Jubilee Hall in Bishop's Waltham on Tuesday, January 8 and the second at The Solent Hotel in Whiteley on Thursday, January 10.

All Saints Church Hall in Denmead is the venue on Tuesday, January 15, followed by The Old Goods Shed at Alresford Station the day after, and The Discovery Centre in Winchester on Thursday, January 17.