West Acre Park: Controversial Plans For 475 Homes In Ryde Submitted

The controversial West Acre Park application for 475 houses in Ryde has finally been submitted.

Validated earlier this week by the Isle of Wight Council, Westridge Village (IOW), owned by the bosses of Captiva Homes, has put forward the application to demolish agricultural barns, and the garage of 125 Marlborough Road, to then build 475 new houses behind the main Ryde road, along with a cafe, doctors’ surgery and office space.

The land between the Appley Road, Bullen Road and  Hope Road in Ryde, a total of 38 hectares, has been the subject of a campaign by local residents for years now to stop building, saving Westridge Farm, where the current tenants have been farming since 1966.

As part of the proposals, Westridge Village (IOW) is looking to build 309 market houses, 116 social or affordable houses with 50 affordable home with ownership proposed.

This will provide a mix of one, two, three and four-bed dwelling,  built in nine phases.

According to the planning statement, submitted as part of the documentation, planning agents, BCM, says it is envisaged the applicants will build approximately 50 dwellings per annum — meaning the site, if it is given permission, could potentially take nine and half years to build.

New junctions could be built off Appley Road and Bullen Road and agents say,  they may provide financial contributions to improve the junction of Great Preston Road and Smallbrook Lane and the signalised junction at Westridge Cross.

In a design statement, by Urban Pulse Design, agents say:

“This proposal presents the opportunity to make a worthwhile contribution towards the overall need for both private and affordable housing within the local area.

“This development gives the opportunity to make efficient use of the available land without it being overdeveloped, while also providing good areas of public open amenity space for use by the residents and local community.”

Along with the housing, the company is proposing public open spaces for people to walk around with 25 acres of landscaped space.

Previously, James Pink, director of Captiva Homes has said about West Acre Park:

“The land in this location has been identified as suitable for residential development and the team at Captiva Homes, as local people, felt a commitment to exploring this opportunity to ensure maximum protection and responsible development of the land by Islanders who care about our community.

“These homes go some way to meeting the housing requirements for our Island now and for future generations, and we have designed our homes to grow with families and give them the opportunity to extend them in the future.”

However, the application has already received the disapproval of the Mayor of Ryde, and Isle of Wight Councillor, Michael Lilley who said the development would destroy Ryde’s last working farm.

To view all planning documents relating to West Acre Park and to comment on the application, you can search 20/01061/FUL on the Isle of Wight Council’s planning portal.

People can comment on the proposals until September 11, 2020.

By Louise Hill, Local Democracy Reporter