Chelmsford development process for 1,100 homes to start again

The process to decide the future of a major brownfield development for more than 1,000 homes in Chelmsford is to start again following legal advice.

The Chelmsford Waterside Development project where around 1,100 homes are being planned had been envisaged by the council to be brought forward in a joint development with developers.

But, a meeting on July 17 has now revealed a decision made at an earlier meeting behind closed doors in March to decide the basis of the development procurement was flawed.

At that March meeting, it was agreed that a joint development was the best one going forward for the council and that selling the land without planning permission would lead to a lower valuation than could be achieved.

That was despite an amendment from the Conservative group querying the process – along with concerns about land valuation and concerns that the council would suffer financially from the development and that a decision could be unconstitutional.

The leader of the Opposition has said a direct sale would be a better route, would generate quicker income for the council and that the sites should go back out to tender.

Chelmer Waterside which used to be a gas works has the potential to deliver up to 1,100 new homes while opening up the River Chelmer and the Chelmer and Blackwater Navigation. Chelmsford council has committed to £43.6m of capital expenditure on this scheme funded in the current financial planning from grants and Community Infrastructure Levy.

The council approved £15.5m in February 2020 and £11m funded by £5.05m CIL, £1.1m S106 and £2.85m additional Housing Infrastructure Fund grant in December 2020. A £375k sum was approved July 2022 for increased design fees and appointment of a project manager and an additional £16.410m was approved by council in July 2023.

The council is currently progressing with the new infrastructure needed to deliver the new homes. This includes a new access road and bridge, relocation of gas mains and some land decontamination.

Leader of the Tory group at Chelmsford City Council, Councillor Roy Whitehead, said following a meeting on July 17: “It takes the whole thing back to square one. They have appointed a new company to look at it again and go out to tender properly.

“I have also asked for an independent value of the site as it is now – now the access bridge is being built and the gas pressure reduction facility is being moved.

“It must be worth more.

He added: “Whether they end up with a development agreement or agree to sell, which is my view, is for them to decide.

“There are various options – none of which were put to the council at the meeting in March.

“If it says this is what we can do – a, b and c – and we’ll make a choice on the answers to the questions, that’s fine.

“But if you haven’t got a choice and told just one thing which turned out to be wrong – that’s why we got annoyed.”

He added: “A lot of money has been spent on pursuing a potential development agreement that should not have been done if they had understood that their original going out to tender was invalid.

“It is starting all over again and what we need to see there are choices which the council is elected to make. It can’t make them without the options.”

The council said after the March meeting “Since this meeting the council has undertaken further due diligence and obtained legal advice.

As a result, the council has decided not to implement the in-principle decision reached and will instead be undertaking a new procurement exercise.”

Councillor Marie Goldman said at the meeting on July 17: “Homes England has been involved in the Waterside project and we are very much reliant as a council on their support.

“Unfortunately because Homes England is essentially a government body we are bound by the guidelines that they set out.

“And they set deadlines for when they need information about things.

“The meeting in March was a special council meeting that was convened because Homes England needed a decision to be made by March 31 which is why we needed to convene that meeting.

“We did of course say that the decision was taken on the proviso of due diligence being done afterwards and of course that due diligence did bring out some issues that we discovered.”

This growth site is a collection of six individual sites which are to be planned as one new neighbourhood. The Peninsula with 446 homes has already been approved.

Additionally, 400 homes are being planned for the former gas works, 220 homes for Lockside, 90 for the Baddow Road Car Park, 120 new homes for the Travis Perkins site and 35 new homes for Navigation Road sites.