Taylor Wimpey have been granted permission for 438 houses north of Greenlaw Mains
The housing developer has been granted permission for 458 dwellings – 36 of which are flats and 422 houses – on vacant land north of Greenlaw Mains 1.
Greenlaw Mill, situated on 74.69 acres of vacant land will now be home to 6 flats, 156 terraced houses, 56 semi-detached houses and 210 detached houses which will be built over five years averaging around 92 a year with works commencing imminently. A consultation period has been ongoing since last February and to this date achieved 56 letters of objection from the community via Midlothian Council’s planning portal. Most have been regarding wildlife, infrastructure and schooling. To combat these views Wimpey will upgrade a number of surrounding roads, which includes the A701 junction which is to be signalised and the junction on to the a702 which will be transformed into a three-arm roundabout. A roundabout will also contact the development to Mauricewood Road and the bus route, which is currently shown to run through the development and down Belwood Road however no operators have been confirmed.
The site could also be subject to a new commercial centre that will likely house a crèche and a convenience store however when we asked Sainsbury’s in mid 2012 they told us that Penicuik did not have the market for another store.
Schooling wise and we reported on Monday that TW would likely pay for extensions to Mauricewood PS (which would be four classrooms) and Beeslack CHS which would accommodate 134 of the planned houses children with the remainder going to PHS under a catchment area review. Unfortunately though denominational primary schooling in the area is full so Wimpey would need to tell new owners that they would not be able to send their children to the catholic school.
Social housing will be present within the development, a move criticised by the local community council, as it will be in the centre of the development. They were worried that it could become a “ghetto”. Exact numbers are unknown however it is estimated to be circa 87 dwellings.
This is the second application from the developer after a previous application last February was withdrawn due to public opposition. However there is still a great amount of uncertainty regarding the new boundary between old and new properties.
Derek Wilson, Technical Director for Taylor Wimpey East Scotland told us:
Taylor Wimpey is delighted to confirm planning permission has been granted for Greenlaw Mills reflecting our comprehensive community engagement approach to positively work within local communities.
Greenlaw Mills is an excellent development that will deliver an impressive choice of new family homes in Penicuik, whilst also offering benefits to the wider Midlothian area.
It is hoped that work will begin on-site very soon, and we anticipate our range of new homes will go on-sale later in the year.
Owen Thomson of Midlothian Council’s planning department also added:
The site at Greenlaw Mains was allocated in the 2003 Midlothian Local Plan and the new housing will help meet the steady demand for new homes in Midlothian. This application for a significant number of new homes is perhaps evidence that Midlothian is becoming more and more a destination of choice for families looking for a new home
Developing…