A legal bid to over-turn a decision to refuse planning permission for a £40 million housing project at Crossag Farm, Ballasalla, will be heard in the High Court on Monday.

The developer behind the scheme J .G. Kelly has lodged a petition with the High Court asking for the Council of Ministers’ decision to be quashed and the planning application be put back to the council for re-determination.

Proposals for a 257-home estate, plus demolition and rebuilding of the public sector Clagh Vane estate and a bypass failed in January * Can I point out here that this is wrong the proposal was for 257 homes only! There has to date been no application for planning permission for neither the rebuilding of Clagh Vane nor for the Bypass in fact nor has the money been granted for either Clagh Vane or the Bypass. *Ed. When the council of ministers followed the advice of independent inspector John Turner that the planning application be refused.
Mr Turner said the application was ‘premature’ pending a southern area plan, that was out for consultation, and that proposals for Ballasalla should be developed as one and not in a piece-meal fashion.

But Local Government and the Environment Minister John Shimmin revealed during Tynwald questions that a High Court petition had been lodged by J.G.Kelly.

Asked by Graham Cregeen (Malew and Santon), who has been fiercely critical of the Crossag Farm scheme, if the DoLGE was working on new plans, Mr Shimmin replied that it was not and was awaiting the outcome of the petition.
He added: ‘Clearly, my department is still of the view that the plans for Crossag Farm are well thought out and would be of great benefit to people requiring affordable homes and for the majority of tenants on Clag Vane’.

Mr Shimmin said he was ‘Surprised and disappointed’ when the inspector recommended refusal and added that J. G. Kelly believed the inspector’s reasoning was flawed.

He said the pre-submission design costs for the scheme were £112,000 and the cost of planning inquiries was £63,613.

The DLGE paid all external consultant’s costs and 50 per cent of the costs for legal representation at the planning inquiry. J. G. Kelly met its own costs in the design and planning process.

Replying to an earlier question from Peter Karran (LibVan Onchan), the DLGE minister said the set back at Crossag Farm would at the very least delay the completion date for 102 first time buyer and 65 public sector rented homes.
He said 449 first time buyers homes planned across the Island were due to be built between now and 2012 a rate of 90 new homes per year against a target of 120. If Crossag Farm was given the go ahead, the average rate would rise to 110 a year which would still be a shortfall.

Mr Karren described the situation for first time buyers as a ‘housing crisis’ and argued that 250 to 300 new affordable homes needed to be built a year, but Mr Shimmin said he had to be realistic, adding ‘I know we have a problem’.

*Report minus Editors note from the Manx Independent Friday March 14 2008