IT was a bittersweet moment for residents in Carterton and nearby villages yesterday as one major housing proposal was blocked but another got the go-ahead.

Plans for 700 homes east of the town were approved but a proposal to build 1,000 homes to the west were rejected at a special West Oxfordshire District Council meeting.

More than 100 people attended the development control committee meeting held at Carterton Community Centre.

Members of the Brize Norton Action Group, opposed to the Carterton East development off Monahan Way, and the Stop Carterton West residents’ group, voiced their concerns to the councillors.

Our top stories

Developer Bloor Homes’ scheme for the eastern development also includes 1.5 hectares of employment land, a primary school, playing fields and allotments.

Don Pilbean, of the Brize Norton group, said residents were promised that Monahan Way would act as a buffer between the village and Carterton when the nearby 1,700-home Shilton Park estate was built.

He added: “My concern is the destruction of Brize Norton.”

Carterton Town Council wanted the site used for up to 10 hectares of employment land, saying that about 80 per cent of residents currently travel out of the town for work.

Bloor Homes’ technical director, Steve Macpherson, said £10m would be spent on infrastructure, including public transport improvements.

The east site has been included in the district council’s draft Local Plan, which would see 2,450 homes built in Carterton by 2029.

Deputy leader Mark Booty said approval of the plans would give officers more control on how it was built.

Some councillors said they had received letters from residents in support of the plans.

But councillor Neil Owen was close to tears as he said: “Small communities matter.

“One only has to read the names on the local war memorials to see what community meant for people, as they died for their communities.”

Some 20 councillors voted to approve the Carterton East proposals, while only three opposed it and one abstained.

Crest Nicholson’s Carterton West plans were turned down by 21 councillors.

Speaking after the meeting, Brize Norton resident Diana Homer said “We’ve been steamrollered by the Government and I don’t think our councillors have the courage to stand up and fight.”

  • Do you want alerts delivered straight to your phone via our WhatsApp service? Text NEWS or SPORT or NEWS AND SPORT, depending on which services you want, and your full name to 07767 417704. Save our number into your phone’s contacts as Oxford Mail WhatsApp and ensure you have WhatsApp installed.