PLANS for 103 houses and flats on undeveloped land in Loughor are being assessed by Swansea’s planning department.
Social housing provider Pobl and Jehu Group want to build a mix of affordable and open market properties – the majority the latter – to the south of Glebe Road, near Beili Glas Farm.
They would range from one-bedroom flats to four-bedroom houses, be energy-efficient, and not exceed two storeys.
Most of them would be on a parcel of land to the north, with the remaining 25 to the south – each with its own access off Heol Pen-Y-Beili and Heol-Y-Wern respectively.
A traffic impact assessment on behalf of the applicants said the “worst case” scenario was 60 two-way movements in the morning peak and 66 in the afternoon peak.
It added that the relevant junctions operated well within capacity and would continue to do so in future scenarios.
A planning statement on behalf of Pobl and Jehu Group said foul sewage would need to be pumped up the sloping site from a new pumping station to connect with a sewer on Glebe Road.
The statement said the land was allocated for 60 residential units in Swansea’s development plan.
Site capacities, it said, should “not be read as (an) absolute cap in terms of homes that are permitted to be delivered”.
It added: “The principle of developing the site for 103 residential units was also discussed during the pre-application meeting with the authority and it was confirmed that in principle the proposal is acceptable.”
The scheme has, according to the report, been sympathetically designed in respect of privacy and residential amenity.
Creating the estate would require the felling of 10 individual trees, eight small tree groups, two small parts of a tree group, and one small part of hedgerow.
New landscaping is proposed, and around 10% of the development footprint would be open space.
It is expected that financial contributions towards highways and education would be required, should the council be minded to grant approval.
Barratt Homes was given detailed planning consent for up to 92 properties on land east of the proposed new estate in 2018.
A handful of objections have so far been forwarded to the planning department, with residents worried about the proposed Pobl And Jehu Group scheme on wildlife, traffic, air quality, local schools and medical services.
One resident, Joanna Dowding, said: There is no infrastructure to manage this number of dwellings – no doctors or dentists, and Gorseinon and Gowerton are already over capacity, with current residents unable to get urgent appointments.”
Another resident, Thomas Morley, said green spaces were “at a premium” in Loughor and that access to the site would be through a very densely-populated area.
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