The controversial bid to build a 5,000-home eco-town on a former airfield is to be challenged in court. Arun District Council is concerned about the Government’s plans for the Ford Airfield site near Arundel.
Chief executive Ian Sumnall has lodged a legal challenge against the plans in the High Court. Arun has already earmarked £20,000 to pay for the legal fees.
The challenge centres around a single word change to the South East Plan where the word “test” was substituted for the word “facilitate” – changing the meaning of the document.
The council is worried that the change, which it says was made without “consultation, explanation or justification”, could mean that eco-towns could be forced on to local authorities without previous testing that has taken place through the council’s own planning document, the Local Development Framework.
The Government’s proposed ecotown scheme would see ten of the new communities built before 2020. The aim is to champion environmentally-friendly lifestyles, carbon-neutrality and energy efficiency. But the councils in each area where the towns have been proposed have objected to the plans.
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