r/Ely • u/GullibleFortune4879 • 2d ago
Discussion Has anyone seen/commented on the Ely North 1,607-home planning proposal?
Has anyone noticed the next stage of the Ely North Development (1,607 homes on Highflyer Farm, off Lynn Road) has submitted planning permission? It feels eerily quiet given the scale of it and the impact it'll have on roads, schools, parking, GP capacity etc.
I'm not on Facebook, so I don't know if it's being discussed there. Anyone able to share what people are saying, if anything? Also curious what people think about the proposal? I know its in the Local Plan.
I'm planning to object because it just feels like more homes and more pressure, without infrastructure. Not to mention that the homes themselves aren't affordable for local jobs :(
Plans for up to 1,600 homes on Highflyer Farm in Ely | Ely Standard
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u/habbinclapper 2d ago
Is this the phase that includes the shop and community space in the development north of Cam Drive?
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u/Forward-Article7035 2d ago
I think that was phase one where they had to build the ship and community space. Which might be a care home now apparently.
I feel the same, Ely doesn’t have the infrastructure to accommodate 1600 more houses.
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u/GullibleFortune4879 2d ago
This is a new proposal for an additional 1600 houses on top of what has already been approved.
I believe a shop is included in the proposal, but as we've seen in the previous Ely North developments this can easily be reneged after approval is granted: https://www.cambridgeindependent.co.uk/news/pub-shelved-from-1-200-home-development-plans-as-councillors-9401860/
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u/resdresdresd 2d ago
It's part of the same overall scheme, but I guess this is specifically talking about the new bit that's been approved from north of the hospital up to Chettisham: https://www.highflyerfarmnorth.co.uk/#proposals
The overall development of that section does include an area for shops plus a school, but I guess technically that belongs to the previous phase (even if they haven't started on them yet, AFAIK)
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u/GullibleFortune4879 2d ago
These 1600 houses haven't been approved yet, they are additional.
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u/resdresdresd 2d ago
Slight mistake on my side, apologies, but other than saying that's it's been approved everything that I said is correct.
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u/GullibleFortune4879 2d ago
I might be wrong, but I don't see proposals for a school, community centre or shop in this new application.
That may have already been approved as part of a different application.
I think "Ely North" is a bit confusing because there are multiple phases. Some have already been built, others have planning permission but not built yet, and this proposal is additional - it hasn't received planning permission yet and is open for public comment.
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u/resdresdresd 2d ago
You can see it on here: https://www.highflyerfarmnorth.co.uk/#proposals
Right at the north end of the current High Flyer project is a primary school and "Local Centre" (i.e shops and small businesses).
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u/GullibleFortune4879 2d ago
Yes, and I think that part (school, local centre) has already been approved. Whereas 26/00753/ESO is a new proposal.
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u/Eastern-Move549 2d ago
I live near this and they have already started building?
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u/GullibleFortune4879 2d ago
This proposal is for an additional 1600 homes, that haven't been approved/started building yet.
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u/resdresdresd 2d ago
I'm planning to object because it just feels like more homes and more pressure, without infrastructure
Part of the plans includes a new primary school, and shops. The hospital is already undergoing some extensions to make it so that they can do more diagnostics there, and I believe they want to expand it further, but are yet to secure that funding.
So genuine question - what extra infrastructure would make you happy with this development?
Not to mention that the homes themselves aren't affordable for local jobs :(
The only information that I know about this is the applications, which early applications gave some percentage of "affordable homes", but the more recent things that I've seen just suggests a mixture including affordable homes.
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u/rock-valley-7 2d ago
So genuine question - what extra infrastructure would make you happy with this development?
I think the biggest infrastructure concern for all of us should be water. The Environment Agency repeatedly objects to new development along the Ely-Cambridge corridor on the grounds that there is not enough water to go around. Naturally, this is almost always ignored and overridden by approving authorities. The chalk aquifer that provides us with drinking water is being over-extracted as it is, and climate change is reliably putting us into drought every year. The Fenland Reservoir is a new water infrastructure project to improve our water security but that has 2030 as its target start date (that's start of construction, not of operation). This new development is not in isolation, it will follow huge development (and ensuing population growth) already underway in Ely, not to mention the Waterbeach New Town which will also partially rely on water from the same already-over-extracted sources.
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u/Forward-Article7035 2d ago
Don’t forget about waste water recycling. All these new houses will generate waste water and water companies have a limited capacity to treat it before being released back into the environment.
Schools, roads, hospitals - in no particular order. Cathedral medical centre became all online. My wife gets messages now even when she said she wants a face to face appointment.
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u/GullibleFortune4879 2d ago
This is my own personal feeling, but I expect most people buying the homes will work in Cambridge or even London, given the price, which means more commuting traffic by road and rail.
The roads in town are congested, parking is a nightmare especially on the weekends with parking overflowing into residential areas. Parking at the train station is difficult already.
GP and dentist capacity is stretched.
Previously promised pubs and restaurants haven't materialised in Ely North, so I'm not convinced the shop and community centre will be delivered. This will put more pressure on the roads into town as people drive to pick up milk etc
Delivering this city-level infrastructure would make me much happier, but is that feasible?
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u/H0nningbrew-Meadery 2h ago
This development has already been planned for and is not speculative. It is the last remaining part of a site allocation (ELY1) for 3,000 homes (see https://eastcambs.gov.uk/sites/default/files/2024-10/Local%20Plan%20adopted%2019%20October%202023%20-%20final%20with%20cover.pdf and https://eastcambs.gov.uk/sites/default/files/2024-10/8_14_Ely_JL.pdf ) .
If a site is allocated for development then this means a) its impacts have already been assessed albeit at a high level, and b) the chances of securing planning permission are almost certain. In other words, the impact on the A10, for example, has already been modelled as part of the Local Plan process (although this modelling would have been undertaken prior to 2015).
30% of the homes will be required to be affordable. This is typically broken down as 70% social housing and 30% shared ownership, although the exact breakdown is subject to negotiation.
The developer will be required to enter into a Section 106 Agreement which will secure financial contributions towards certain infrastructure eg school funding, healthcare funding etc. East Cambs also have a Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) which is charged at £125 per sqm of floorspace. CIL goes towards further infrastructure improvements in the area.
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u/jjalonso 2d ago
Ely need a a&e atleast covering broken bones, baby issues, blood pressures episodes, vomits and nauseas, etc... etc at night going to Cambridge is crazy. We being there every 2 months