A 140-HOME plan for Crossways has brought the total of new houses being applied for locally to over 200 in just a couple of days.

It follows an application, reported yesterday, for a 66-home extension to Littlemoor, Weymouth.

The Crossways scheme is for 140 homes west of Frome Valley Road, a project which already had 'in principal' agreement, with developers now asking Dorset Council to approve the details of appearance, landscaping, layout and scale.

The company say the project will provide employment for 434 people and generate £1.68million in tax revenue.

Talks about the site started with the former West Dorset District Council in 2019.

Cavanna Homes South West say their development will include a minimum 35 per cent affordable housing, 49 homes, the majority of them for rent, 15 on a shared ownership basis. Most of the new homes on the site will be three or four-bed with 33 being two-bed, the majority of these affordable housing. All the new homes will be two-storey with the affordable homes arranged in clusters of no more than ten units and spread across the site.

A children’s formal play space, informal green spaces, a pedestrian access to the new link road and vehicle access to Frome Valley Road are all included in the dozens of documents deposited with Dorset Council.

A minimum area of 5.6hectares, more than half the site, has been identified to the west of the development area as a Suitable Natural Alternative Greenspace (SANG) which will be protected from future development and enhanced with new tree planting.

An existing property within the 5-hectare development area, Egdon House, along the southern boundary will be unaffected by the proposals and the existing tree belt between the area for housing and the SANG will be retained.

One of the features of the development will be ‘parking courts’ which the developers say will produce a stronger street frontage, reflecting a village environment, and a ‘village pond’ at the entrance to the site.

In all 368 parking spaces are being proposed on the development.

Comments on the details, which can be seen on the Dorset Council website, ref P/RES/2021/01645, remain open until June 14th.