The Whitby Community Network has warned that a new joint venture agreement to build homes in the town will not meet local housing needs and threatens the future of the local golf course.
A community group in Whitby has raised serious concerns over a new joint venture agreement between North Yorkshire Council and a private developer to build new homes in the area.
The Whitby Community Network claims that the proposed housing development will fail to meet the actual needs of the town, citing ongoing issues with affordability, a high concentration of holiday lets, and the loss of valuable green space.
According to the network, the plans fail to address the specific challenges faced by local residents who are being priced out of the housing market. They argue that the joint venture does not go far enough to provide homes that people on average local wages can afford, despite an independent housing needs assessment being carried out for the Whitby neighbourhood plan.
Andy Jefferson, speaking on behalf of the Whitby Community Network, said:
"This joint venture does not address the housing requirements in Whitby as identified by the independent housing needs assessment we had carried out for the Whitby neighbourhood plan. This identified up to approximately 45% of housing is being used for holiday lets and second homes with most new housing not affordable for local people. The proposed agreement is only providing 30% as affordable housing, the present requirement under the local plan for any housing developer. Therefore, how is this joint venture increasing affordable housing delivery? The term affordable housing to many Whitby people is a misnomer with average earnings resulting in such properties being still out of reach."
Alongside the significant concerns regarding the affordability of the new homes, the Whitby Community Network has also highlighted the environmental and recreational impact of the proposed development.
The group asserts that the land earmarked for the new homes was originally part of the local golf course. They warn that the course is already facing existential challenges from coastal erosion on the opposite side of the road, and that building on this tranche of land could jeopardise its future without proper safeguards in place.
The community network points out that local planning rules require any development on this site to secure the long-term viability of the golf course, specifically including the retention of its eighteen-hole status through suitable reconfiguration.
They claim that North Yorkshire Council has not properly considered the loss of green space, nor the removal of essential health and leisure facilities in a town that has already been identified as lacking such amenities.
Mr Jefferson added:
"This land was originally part of the golf course, with golf course land across the road being lost to coastal erosion, and no plans are in place for ensuring this facility can be maintained. The current local plan states for this particular tranche of land, the development of this site will only be supported where it is demonstrated that it will contribute to the longer term future of the golf course whilst also allowing the retention of its 18 hole status through a suitable reconfiguration of the course. This condition seemingly has not been met. The removal of a further leisure health facility, together with a lack of green space already identified in Whitby appears not to have been considered by this council."
The Whitby Community Network continues to urge for developments that genuinely address the town's housing crisis while protecting its community assets and green spaces from inappropriate development.
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