GAZETTE & HERALD: DEVELOPER Barratt Homes has been told to go back to the drawing board after contentious proposals for 102 homes off Spanbourne Avenue, Chippenham, were turned down.
Barratt wanted to redevelop the 1.6 hectare site with a mix of homes, from three-bedroom houses to one- bedroom flats.
But North Wiltshire district councillors said the development did not have enough affordable housing. They also said it would be a loss of a valuable employment site.
The site is currently occupied by Viking Laminates.
Coun Peter Davis objected to the plan. He said it would deprive Chippenham of an employment site directly adjacent to a residential area.
He said: "We have just been assessing and acting on the proposed local plan up to 2011, which includes increasing existing employment land, and here we are a week or so later proposing to gobble up a centrally located, good employment site in the centre of town.
"There is the opportunity on sites like this for people to obtain jobs and live locally.
"There have been too many of these sites taken away by residential development."
Coun Christine Crisp said she was concerned there was no mention of an educational contribution from Wiltshire County Council for such a large development.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article