What to do when an estate is going in beside you?

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MissRibena

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Hi everyone

I'm in a tricky situation. I bought an old house about a year ago on the edge of a small village in the west midlands. There was planning permission granted for a small estate down the road but now my across-the-road neighbour (who I know for years and years) has bought the field beside my house as well as the original development land.

I accept that this is "progress" and people need somewhere to live and that I have no entitlement to the peace and privacy of the countryside etc. I also don't want to fall out with my neighbours even if I know they are fairly mercenary and probably don't really give a hoot about me.

I thought of trying to buy the field beside me myself. But I don't really want to be a property developer and it would cost too much to just leave it there. It's not officially on sale in any case; it's neighbours doing it amongst themselves. There's not much point in trying to move really because as far as I can see, no matter where you go there's likely to be something going in around you.

So what is the best way to protect my interests without getting embroiled in the planning process (objections etc). I want to maintain as much as my privacy as possible and protect the wildlife habitats surrounding my house as much as I can also. How can I be as cute as him? It's such a petty problem in the grand scheme of things but I can't help it getting me down so much either.

Rebecca
 
MissRibena said:
So what is the best way to protect my interests without getting embroiled in the planning process (objections etc)
Click to expand...
very simple really, approach your neighbour and ask if you can
view their proposed development plans. I would strongly suggest
you have a person with you capable of fully interpreting the
drawings and then explaining the details on to you. Hopefully
your neighbour will take your views on board as you are in close
vicinity to the proposed development and your objection if brought to
An Bord Pléanalla could delay the project by many many
months and that's your bargaining chip.

best of luck
 
Hate to sound negative but i think you might have to get involved in the planning process or at least if your neighbours developing it take a keen interest and keep in with him. Best to try and put across your concerns in a fairly subtle way. Talking about the importance of not destroying the character/ charm of the village etc. Thats what people want when they buy in a village. The importance of keeping green areas and the wild life etc. Bit vague i know but try and raise these things as neighbour might be focused more on the €€€€.
 
Good suggestions from Kiwi there. Try and ascertain from drawing what degree of back to back separation you will have i.e. how far opposing windows are from each other. Also you should ensure that boundary finishes are clearly set out in terms of timeframe, construction detail to be used, height, finish to both sides and cappings. Landscaping should be detailed in terms of density of planting, timeframe for planting, species and arrangments for replacement of dead/ diseased plants within the first year or two of planting. Development is unavoidable and unfortunately some development is of low or poor quality in terms of design and construction but you can have your say. However be very aware that unless you make an observation or objection at the planning stage you cannot object to Bord Pleanala later if permission is granted. Arrange to meet with your neighbour and ask to see the plans and ask for a copy- the plans will be available to the public once the application is lodged anyway. The most importnat thing to do afterwards is to keep your eyes peeled- it's very common for developers to seek to vary planning conditions, house density and boundaries later through subsequent planning applications. Most importantly try not to get too upset about it.
 
I like Thrifty's concerns regarding village life, wildlife etc but to be quite honest we are property and money obsessed in this country and the neighbour is probably only concerned about maximising his bottom line. Best to look for "concrete" (pardon the unfortunate pun) things like good boundaries, adequate separation distances etc (all of which can be illustrated, detailed, conditioned by way of drawings etc) rather than talk about subjective, aesthetic things like "charm of village life" etc. Sorry I'm a realist- I also love the countryside and hate bungalow blight, ribbon development etc. but you have to be realistic. Don't be led on by smooth talk and promises.
 
Thanks everyone

That's it exactly Capenter. This guy has zero interest in the things that I care about. He probably already writes me off as a nice-but-harmless hippy type. Unfortunately the county council is probably more in tune with him than me also.

When I do get the drawings (probably from the planning office because I wouldn't fully trust him to give me the real mccoy), would anyone have a recommendation as to a good company of engineers that I could show them to? I wouldn't go to any of the local guys as the town is too small and I would feel the property developers would be more important as a potential customer to them than me.

Rebecca
 
Perhaps take another approach -
How much lang does your house sit on?. perhaps you could sell?
If you sit on the edge of a town, in this day in edge you site will be worth a pretty penny. Then you can purchase a site/house in a secluded location??

Pain in the This post will be deleted if not edited to remove bad language I know, but i know from personal experience 'trusted' neighbours cannot be trusted
 
Thanks bertson

I have thought of moving but I just feel that this could probably happen anywhere (or anywhere I could afford!) and that really it would be better for me to deal with it and get over it than run away from it. Part of me kind of feels that letting it bother me is buying into the hype about privacy and being a bit petit bourgeois. Or maybe that's daft too! :)

I don't think my house will have appreciated very much in the year and also potential buyers of my house are likely to be put off by the future development, as I would be. If this current development goes ahead, it would leave my house in a corner of a another field, and probably some day more valuable as part of another development.

So at the moment, I'm thinking the best thing to do is to wait and see what the plans are like and I'm lucky that my own site is almost 2 thirds of an acre so I'm thinking some clever landscaping of my own may be my best course of action.

Would people prefer to have the road into the estate beside them rather than houses? I've never lived in an estate and am not sure which would be preferrable.

Rebecca
 
Rebecca
You shouldn't need the services of a professional to read the siteplan, which is really what you're interested in. Acquaint yourself with what is proposed before approaching a professional and try and see how the developer can minimise the impact on you through good design. Having the road right beside you will ensure traffic congestion in the morning, bright lights at night and some road noise. Having private gardens adjoining you would be preferable in my opinion, however this all depends on layout, separation distances, boundaries etc. You shouldn't consider selling up -just ensure your voice is heard.
 
Hi Rebecca

We had a similar situation last year and I got lots of good advice here.

I think if you do not want the estate to be built, you should voice your opinon by way of submission to the county council ... not that they pay much heed.

If you think the estate is in contravention of the county development plan, which you can get online from the council website you should definately take it further.

I would not get personal about it, nor would I enter into any discussions with the land owner etc. about it, if it were me. I would simply use my right to object if I wanted to do so and see what happens.

Be very clear in your own mind what you would be happy with ... worst case scenario would a 1.8m wall keep you happy?

Go to the planning office and request to see the file. Make sure you see the whole file ... it's not uncommon for this particular county council to omit half of the pertinant infomation!

An estate per say may not be a bad thing ... it just depends on what they are planning to build. If there isn't a good mix of house types, you will get all the same type of buyers ... ie first time buyers or young families ... who will have children all around the same age ... which will grow up to be teenagers at the same time ... well you get the jist :)

I will PM you with our own planning case to give you an idea of what is involved.

Good luck.
 
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