OVERTON Parish Council has overwhelmingly objected to plans by Westbury Homes to build 75 dwellings on land at Foxdown.

The application for full planning permission comes almost two years after Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council decided to sell the land to the developer for £2.8 million.

The proposed dwellings are non-standard houses using renewable sustainable materials.

But parish councillors have a raft of concerns over the development, particularly as they do not believe it meets the housing needs of Overton residents.

They are also unhappy at the lack of effort by both the developer and the borough council to discuss the plans with the parish council and say no effort has been made to hold public consultation with residents.

Areas of the application do not meet criteria set down in the Overton Village Design Statement, which was adopted as supplementary planning guidance early last year, and the plans are incorrect says the council.

"The village is going to have to live with this development for a long time so we need to know the eventual design is going to be appropriate to the area," the parish council's response said.

"It is the opinion of this parish council that the expectation of villagers is that a higher percentage of the houses on this site would be available as affordable housing."

Councillors were particularly unhappy that the 30 per cent of affordable housing, which takes up only 10 per cent of the site, is placed in two distinct areas, contradicting the design brief.

They were also unhappy about the cul-de-sac layout of the site, which many councillors described as 'terrible'. "It is important that residents be encouraged not to use their car to travel to the village centre which already has a major parking problem," the objection said.

"A cul-de-sac layout will not encourage public transport onto the estate, enhancing the need for a car."

And in light of the planned development of the Croudace site on Overton Hill, which has been earmarked for 60 houses, there are real concerns about how the infrastructure will cope - particularly the main drains, the surgery and the school.

Other planning concerns were the positioning of the flats, which councillors felt were out of keeping with the area, the proposed planting in communal areas, lighting and material issues, pedestrian, cycle, pushchair and wheelchair access, and the siting of roundabouts on B roads.

The decision of whether to approve the application will be made at a future meeting of Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council's development control committee.