Plans for 160 homes at Killingdown Farm in Croxley Green refused

Members of Three Rivers District Council’s planning committee unanimously voted last night to turn down an application to redevelop Killingdown Farm.

The application had drawn plenty of opposition with nearly 2,500 people signing a petition to stop the development, while 317 objections were lodged on the council’s planning portal.

According to Croxley Green Parish Council, the plans were turned down due to the impact the private development would have on The Green conservation area, as well as on single-track Little Green Lane.

A Change petition created by Elaine Fraser said campaigners were "passionate" about "saving" Little Green Lane being used as access for this development.

Little Green Lane in Croxley Green, which was proposed to be the access point for the new development. Credit: Google Maps

The plans to demolish the existing farm buildings and construct 160 homes - in the form of two-storey houses and three-storey blocks of flats – were previously deferred at a planning meeting held in March.

The majority of councillors voted at that meeting to delay making a decision to allow the district council to undertake its own independent review into access from Little Green Lane.

That review took place, which concluded the plans to widen the road were "adequate" to serve the proposed development, and that it would "not be expected" to have a "severe adverse" impact on the road network capacity.

However, when the application came back to the committee last night, the proposal was refused by every councillor.

A map of the Killingdown Farm development site in Croxley Green. Credit: Google Maps

Croxley Green Parish Council tweeted: "The Three Rivers District Council planning committee members have unanimously refused the approval of the Killingdown Farm development.

"Councillors and members of the public raised concerns over the detrimental impact of the application on the conservation area, the urbanisation of Little Green Lane and the overall impact on the character & landscape of the area.

"This is a great result for Croxley Green tonight, but there is still lots of work to be done to make sure these concerns have been listened to and that the plans are amended by the developer.

"Thank you to the members of the planning committee for reaching this unanimous decision, and all Croxley Green residents who made sure their voices did not go unnoticed."

The planning meeting was held at Watersmeet Theatre in Rickmansworth. Credit: Twitter

Croxley Green district councillor Dominic Sokalski also tweeted: "Delighted the Killingdown Farm application was refused. Myself and Cllr Margaret Hofman spoke against it alongside residents.

"It is critical the historic Little Green Lane is protected and residents concerns are heard. The Lib Dems will work hard to ensure that happens."

Although this proposal was refused, development of this site is still likely after the land was taken out of the greenbelt in 2014 and allocated as a potential new housing site. The site has been included in the council's latest list of sites as part of its new upcoming local plan.

The scheme put to the committee last night did meet the council’s policies on affordable housing with 45 per cent of the 160 homes designated as "affordable".