Residents frustrated at plan for 15 apartments in Burgess Hill after health centre idea falls through

Croudace Homes applied to build the flats for Phase 2E at Keymer Tile Works in Kilnwood Avenue, Burgess Hill, instead of a proposed health centre.

The proposal is also for associated access, as well as car parking, refuse and cycle storage.

The application has received dozens of letters of objection with one resident saying: “The town is in desperate need to have a new health centre. We have a real need for this in the east side of the town where approximately 1,000 new homes have been built in the past five years.”

Croudace Homes told the Middy that they sent a letter to all Kings Weald residents in March, explaining that the company was unable to proceed with the health centre.

The letter said: “Despite some initial interest, we are saddened that neither a public or private medical organisation wanted to run the health centre, despite last-ditch attempts spearheaded by Croudace Homes.”

It continued: “Croudace Homes has gone beyond the provisions of the legal agreement to find a suitable occupant, spending the last six years in exhaustive consultation with Mid Sussex District Council, the Deputy Mayor of the Council, the local MP at the time (Sir Nicholas Soames), Mid Sussex Clinical Commissioning Group and a local doctors’ surgery.”

The letter added: “The legal detail of our original planning application for Kings Weald allows us to seek an alternative use for the land if all the clauses pertaining to the health centre’s delivery were met. With six years passing since Croudace Homes first marketed the health centre to prospective partners and all other clauses met, we are now in a position to repurpose the site, ensuring the square is complete.”

The application for apartments includes plans for 15 car parking spaces and 26 cycle spaces. One Burgess Hill resident said they were concerned that more flats could cause a ‘safety issue’. They said there is already ‘an unsafe amount of traffic and dangerous parking’ and added: “This is simply too many new flats in an area that was not originally meant for this purpose.”

Another resident said: “Such an influx of residents would put an immense strain on the existing infrastructure.”

But Croudace Homes’ design and access statement said: “A well-connected movement network exists around the site, consisting of vehicular access from the north allowing connectivity from the main road to the open scape, and various pedestrian access points.”

It added: “Croudace are part of the Considerate Constructors scheme and during construction will implement a site waste management program ensuring the development has as little impact on the environment as possible. As a new development in the area, the resultant building works and additional families will benefit the wider community through the patronage of local services.”

Residents raised concerns about a potential loss of privacy and natural light from the building. But Croudace Homes’ design and access statement said the dwellings ‘will comply with extant Building Regulations’, adding : “The layout has been formulated with the best design principles in mind.”

The developer applied to Mid Sussex District Council in April and the proposal is pending consideration. People can view it at pa.midsussex.gov.uk/online-applications using reference DM/23/0941.