Chilmington Green & Discovery Park Area Action Plan
The Chilmington Green & Discovery Park Area Action Plan
(AAP) document forms part of Ashford’s Local Development
Framework.
The
AAP
will set out the
key strategic development and design principles for the site and
the policies and parameters for land use, density, building heights
and the overall quantum of development. Chilmington Green is
identified in ABC's Core Strategy (policy CS5) as an urban
extension site which should be planned to accommodate no less than
3,350 dwellings and 600 jobs by 2020, with the potential for up to
7,000 dwellings and 1,000 jobs in total. This largely undeveloped
greenfield site therefore presents a significant opportunity to
bring forward a sustainable new community within easy access
of Ashford town centre and the new High-Speed services to Central
London. A key part of the
AAP
process will be the production of a masterplan for the development
of the area, to which development proposals will be expected to
accord.
Current Position
The preparation of the AAP is well
underway. A number of consultation events were carried out
with key stakeholders during 2007 which led to the production of a
Chilmington Green Issues and Options Paper. This paper gives
consideration to the objectives of the urban extension, the
opportunities and constraints of the site in relation to regional
and local policy, and other local strategies and initiatives. The
Issues Paper was not subjected to a formal public consultation
process but outlines all the issues which were raised through the
stakeholder consultation events.
This Issues paper will form the basis of developing a credible
evidence base which will see the Council produce a Draft
Regulation 27
AAP
for formal
consultation (6 weeks) by the end of 2010. This will be the
first stage of formal public consultation. Responses to
the Draft Submission will be considered when preparing the
final submission version of the
AAP
to the Secretary of State, with
subsequent adoption in Summer 2011.
Currently, work is being carried out by Gillespie's to
scope out the possible recreational uses for Discovery Park, one of
the three new strategic parks planned for Ashford. Discovery Park
will be located at Chilmington Green and will serve Ashford and the
wider area.
In conjunction with the preparation of the
AAP, a Sustainability Appraisal Scoping Report
has been produced which assesses the economic, social and
environmental constraints of the proposed urban extension.
Consultation
A series of consultaion events have been carried out with
stakeholders and residents. An independently facilitated workshop
was held at the Singleton Environment Centre on 30/9/08 to provide
key stakeholders with an update on the Chilmington Green &
Discovery Park Area Action Plan process and give them an
opportunity to put their views and ideas across. Over 40
attendees took part in the workshop.
In February 2009, an independently facilitated two day design
workshop was held. The purpose was to reflect collectively on the
key issues from the previous workshop of 30th September 2008 and
work with experts to develop options alongside stakeholders with a
view to further developing the key principles for Chilmington
Green which were initially set out in the Greater Ashford
Development Framework (GADF) and subsequently in the Core Strategy.
Around 80 delegates participated in the workshops. The event
combined a series of short plenary and group 'learning
presentations', together with detailed discussions and design
workshops on key themes.
Chilmington Green Reports and
Presentations
Sustainable Energy
Arup have been commissioned by Ashford's Future to develop a
business case and seek practical solutions for sustainable energy
generation at the Chilmington Green urban extension to meet Ashford
Core Strategy Policy CS10.
Smartlink
The Core Strategy is clear that the urban extensions should
'anchor' a high quality, high frequency public transport system to
ensure that increasing numbers of residents are attracted to public
transport. The location, mix and density of new development to
create a viable and efficient public transport service will thus be
a key consideration within the masterplanning process. A rapid bus
service, called SMARTLINK, will run through the site, linking it
with Victoria Way, the town centre and Ashford International
Station. A park-and-ride facility is also proposed on the A28 which
will be subject to further viability testing.
Ashford's Future in partnership with Kent County Council have
produced a brochure outlining the purpose of Smartlink and the
proposed bus network, including bus lanes and bus priority
measures.
Further information on Smartlink is available on the Ashford
Best placed website, by following the link:
http://www.ashfordbestplaced.co.uk/live_here/transport_and_travel/smartlink.aspx
Contact Details
For further information on the Chilmington Green & Discovery
Park Area Action Plan, please contact Charlotte Brooks-Lawrie
on 01233 330638 or email the Policy Team.
This webpage was updated on
2/18/2010