A SECOND application to build homes on a greenfield site on the outskirts of Tavistock, a year after the first one was unanimously refused by planners, has baffled local residents.

The detailed proposal for 110 homes at Butcher Park Hill was thrown out last July after much local opposition, because it was outside the development boundary and there were concerns over the access road to the site.

Despite expectations to the contrary, the applicant, Trand UK, did not appeal against the refusal, but now an outline plan for 110 homes has been submitted, once again with affordable housing forming a large part of the scheme.

The scheme includes 40% affordable housing, parking, open space, play space and associated infrastructure.

Several years ago the site was given the go-ahead for 52 cabin-style holiday homes after a planning inspector deemed there was a need for this kind of development in Tavistock but these were never built.

Tavistock resident Nicky Francis said she believed that the developers were opting to try their luck again with a housing scheme, as it would be 'significantly more lucrative.'

'One of the main reasons for refusal was that this development would introduce an undesirable pattern of development into the open countryside,' she said.

'This route is a key gateway to Tavistock, a World Heritage Site and as such, deserves to have the right level of consideration given to it, hence no doubt the application being refused in 2014.

'Our Plan, which takes us up to 2031, does not include this site as a prospective area for development . . . I don't think this has ever been classed as inside the planning zone, so why are we going around the loop again?'

Resident Amanda Cheetham said nothing had changed in this application for planners to reach a different conclusion.

She said Devon County Council had advised that the development would result in seven vehicle movements per dwelling per day — which would equate to 770 extra vehicle movements going up and down Drake Road and Butcher Park Hill, which was constantly congested and where gridlock was not a rare occurrence.

'To make matters worse the developer is still proposing to narrow Butcher Park Hill with a pavement which for most of the length is to be 1.2 metres wide against a county requirement of 1.5 metres,' she said.

'The hill effectively becomes a one way road.'

Resident Sue Dunstan said drainage issues were also a problem, as this area had a history of flooding: 'Clearly this application has been slipped in now, under the radar after the elections, just before the summer holidays and with no mention of public consultation and little apparent change in detail.'

Town and borough councillor for Tavistock Jeff Moody said as far as he was aware, there had been no change in the national planning policies to warrant a change of tack by the planning committee, but he would be discussing the issues with planning officers in due course.

'I appreciate the fact that we need affordable housing in Tavistock, but it cannot be the only driver — there are lots of other things that should be taken into consideration,' he said.

The deadline for representations to be sent to West Devon Borough Council's planning committee on this application is July 23.

The developer was unavailable for comment as the Times went to press yesterday (Wednesday) morning.