Mandale Homes, who owns the Astral Park site at Thorpe Thewles, has been forced to take remediation measures to its development following the intervention of Stockton North MP, Alex Cunningham.
Local residents got in touch with Alex with concerns about privacy and flooding as a result of the developer dumping soil on the field next to St James Church, Wynyard Road. As a result of this the field was raised four to five feet in height, allowing workers and passers-by to look directly into the houses of North Close. Concerns about privacy were compounded by the construction of a concrete path at this height. Some back gardens had also been subject to minor levels of flooding as a result of the soil slope being too close to the properties.
Following Alex’s intervention, Stockton Council launched an investigation where it found Mandale Homes had carried out these works without planning consent. Now the developer has been forced to take action to reduce the height of the pathway to an acceptable level, and remove the soil closest to the properties at North Close. These will be subject to planning rules, and local residents will be given the chance to comment on them.
Alex said:
“Once again we have an inconsiderate developer ignoring planning conditions and doing what they like to the detriment of the local community around them. People are fed up and it shouldn’t have to take interventions like mine to make developers play by the rules.
“I’m pleased that Mandale Homes has been forced to rectify these issues and seek the appropriate planning consent. I’d urge all local residents to have their say when the Council put these out for consultation.”
