Contractors working on the site of the former Virginia Park Golf Club have been issued a warning notice by Natural Resources Wales.
Prichard Remediation and Withey Developments have been working on the site since March after developers Bellway withdrew its application to build 350 houses on the land.
Why did Bellway pull out of the development?
Outline planning permission for the development was provisionally granted in May 2019 and was finally granted in December 2019 once a Section 106 agreement was signed.
By December last year however, developer Bellway Homes withdrew their application because they could not agree terms with the landowner.
But what they withdrew was actually a “reserved matters” application – this focuses on the finer details of the plans. The overall outline planning application still stands and is in place until 2024.
What is a Section 106 agreement?
A Section 106 agreement is a legally binding private contract between a developer (or a number of
interested parties) and a Local Planning Authority (LPA) that operates alongside a statutory planning permission.
Such agreements require developers to carry out specified planning obligations when implementing planning
permissions and are the result of negotiations on these matters between the parties.
Improvements might mean road upgrades, new playgrounds or even a financial contribution to a scheme to encourage walking and cycling, for example.
What were the original plans?
Before Bellway pulled out of the development, ‘high quality’ homes were promised in the outline planning application, along with a community centre, playing fields and children’s play areas.
Virginia Park Golf Club closed in March 2017 with falling membership numbers making the venture unviable.
The clubhouse, and surrounding ponds, would have been retained with the building serving as a local centre and complimented by a sports pitch.
Of the 350 homes planned as part of the development, just 25 were set to be affordable housing.
The development proposed 160 three-bedroom homes, 140 four-bedroom houses and 35 two-bedroom houses, as well as eight one-bedroom and four two-bedroom flats and three two-bedroom bungalows.
The area, a former landfill site, is being decontaminated and flattened, with drainage work also taking place to prepare the site for potential future housing.
The warning letter said a permit from NRW was needed to dig out, treat, and move the waste on the site before carrying out the works.
A warning letter is issued by NRW when it believes an environmental offence has been committed.
NRW said Prichard’s and Withey did not obtain this permit before work started.
NRW’s David Griffiths said: “The necessary environmental permits must be in place before any further work can be carried out.
“Failure to comply with the warning letter could lead to an increase in the level of enforcement response.
“Our officers are in close contact with the operators and will be carrying out site visits to monitor the situation and ensure their waste activities are in line with their remediation strategy.”
George Harvey, Environmental Manager at Prichard’s, said: “The development at Virginia Park is a complex project with many different elements to the permissions needed on site.
“Prichard Remediation are committed to working with the local authority and NRW in an open and positive manner to ensure any permissions required are in place.”
He added: “All works are being carried out in line with the approved Remediation Strategy, which ensures the highest levels of environmental and public health protection are in place.”
Morgan Jones ward councillor James Pritchard said: “Together with residents we have fought hard against this development and we will continue to lobby the council and Natural Resources Wales over the numerous issues which have come about from works being carried out on this site.”
Cllr Shayne Cook, who also represents the Morgan Jones ward, welcomed NRW’s intervention. He said: “This letter sends out a strong message to the developer that you can’t carry out activities on this site without following the correct procedures and having the right permits in place.”
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