Trafford JV strikes relief road deal
Heath Lane Farm, the joint venture delivering a £100m residential scheme in Partington, has agreed to pay £1.6m towards the construction of the Carrington Relief Road, paving the way for 600 new homes.
The JV, which was formed in 2017 and comprises contractor Galliford Try and housing association Trafford Housing Trust, has already started work to deliver the first 148-home phase at the 71-acre former National Grid site, after it was granted planning approval in April 2019.
Outline consent for a further 452 homes was also awarded last April but the proposal, which totals 600 homes, will go before Trafford Council’s planning committee again next week after a change in legislation now requires the developer to contribute towards construction of the relief road.
The road – part-funded by Transport for Greater Manchester and Homes England – is intended to connect the A1 east of Carrington to the Carrington Spur and the M60, serving development sites such as Heath Lane Farm and easing congestion on the A6144 Manchester Road corridor.
Overall, the relief road is expected to cost £32.8m and is due to complete by 2023, according to Trafford Council.
When the council first approved Heath Lane Farm’s plans, the developer was exempt from making a financial contribution towards the creation of the road under Community Infrastructure Levy laws.
The road will ease congestion on the A6144
The Community Infrastructure Levy is a planning tool that can be used by councils to ask developers to contribute towards certain infrastructure projects.
Following a change in legislation in September 2019, Trafford Council is now able to seek a contribution towards the Carrington Relief Road from the Galliford Try and Trafford Housing Trust JV.
Under the agreement between the council and the JV, the latter is expected to pay 50% of the £1.6m total once planning permission is granted. The next 25% is expected on completion of the first 80 homes, and the final payment is due when 250 homes are built or when a planning application for the relief road is lodged.
The council is in the process of preparing a planning application for the relief road and, according to a business case for the scheme published last year, the application is due to be submitted before the end of this year.
Barton Willmore is the planning consultant for the Partington housing project and Wakefield-based Sten Architecture designed it.
The former National Grid gas storage facility that previously occupied the site was demolished in 2012.
The Heath Lane Farm scheme forms part of the wider Future Carrington development that is expected to deliver around 6,100 homes and 4.4m sq ft of employment space, much of which is being developed by regeneration specialist Himor.
