AN APPLICATION to build more than 100 homes on a derelict site has been approved by councillors - but the final decision does not lie with them.

Councillors debated a planning application by Vivid Homes to build 105 new homes between Toynbee Road, Eastleigh and the town’s cemetery.

The application had previously been deferred after concerns about noise and parking were raised.

But, in a meeting on Tuesday night, councillors approved the plans in a hypothetical vote.

Eastleigh Local Area Committee resolved to recommend to the Planning Inspectorate that they would have approved the Toynbee Road application subject to the conditions in the committee report and completion of a Legal Agreement, had they been determining the application. 

The decision on the application will now be taken by the Planning Inspectorate.

Cllr Tina Campbell voted against the development and raised concerns in debate.

She said: “I am concerned about the parking and that we are not meeting our standards.

“It is only sustainable if you are a fit resident but if you are an older resident and have to walk 700 metres to the bus, that is a hell of a long way to go with your shopping.

“Parking is an absolute nightmare on unadopted roads and residents have already flagged up that parking is already an issue in the area.”

Parking was a bone of contention between the councillors.

Cllr Tanya Park said: “As a society we need to cut down our reliance on cars and provide less car parking space. I think this an ideal place to have a lower parking provision.”

Cllr Sara Tyson-Payne disagreed. She said: “I think there are too many homes in too small a space and too few parking spaces. It is just an absolute no-no.”

The application will include 37 affordable homes, of which 13 would be two and three bedroomed shared ownership houses and 24 would be social rented houses including a mix of one and two bedroomed apartments and two to four bedroomed houses.

Cllr Paul Bicknell said: “This is an interesting one and it is quite unique and new for this committee. The site is effectively a contaminated concrete slab.

“The reason we have 105 dwellings on this site is because the developer needs to cleanse the site. Things like diesel need to be taken into account. The developer is making sure this site is not contaminated.

“We hear an awful lot about climate change and try, where possible, to persuade people away from cars. There is parking on-site but there won’t be any overspill.”