NEW plans for almost 150 homes have been submitted to Bradford Council at a site which was controversially given outline approval two years ago on appeal.

The application is for the approval of 147 two, three and four-bedroom homes to be built at Cote Farm, off Leeds Road, in Thackley.

Approval has already been granted for 60 homes on the site, and is successful this proposal will see the total number of properties on the site rise to 207.

When outline planning approval was sought in 2015, the application was met with backlash from the community, with Councillor Jeanette Sunderland saying the decision signalled “open season for developers”.

The proposal was approved on appeal in 2015, with the planning inspector saying the need for housing land was “severe and immediate”.

If granted, the development will see the greenfield site transformed into a new housing estate, incorporating affordable housing.

Green “corridors” and “pockets” will be retained in the development, along with a large open grassed space for recreation.

The homes will include 32 two-bedroom houses, 96 three-bedroom houses, and 79 four-bedroom houses, each with private gardens and off-road parking.

In the plan’s design and access statement, it said Grade II listed buildings at Cote Farm and Little Cote Farm will be protected from the development, and it will also retain the Crooked Lane public right-of-way. Trees will also be retained where possible on the site.

It said: “The scheme greatly increases the number of trees on the site.

“It will repair and replant new hedgerows, repair walls, manage this new green infrastructure and do so in a way that will maintain Crooked Lane and enhance biodiversity across the site.

“These proposals provide a significant contribution to the number and range of dwellings within the district while also providing environmental improvements and community benefits for the local area.”

Councillor Jeanette Sunderland (Lib Dem, Idle and Thackley) said the Thackley does not need more family homes, but smaller properties for people to downsize.

She said: “A large number of homes get single person Council tax reductions.

“There are a lot of single people living in family homes.

“We should be building smaller properties such as bungalows so people can downsize. By building larger properties it is storing up the problem for the future.”

On the proposed development, she added that as it is two years after the plan was given outline approval, she is “expecting something spectacular”, and does not want “bog standard houses” to be built.

Public consultation on the plan is open until Friday, November 24, and to comment visit the Council planning website or write to the Planning Service at Britannia House, Hall Ings, BD1 1HX, quoting reference 17/05902/MAR.