Lakes project delay 'over affordable housing'
ReutersA major development in a national park was halted over a lack of affordable homes included in the plans, an MP has said.
The Windermere Gateway Project, planned for the Orrest Head Farm site within the Lake District National Park, aimed to boost affordable housing, tourism and employment.
Liberal Democrat MP Tim Farron told BBC Radio Cumbria that delays to the project were caused by property developers and investors who "seemed not to be serious" about meeting the quota requested for the site.
Urban Splash, the property company in charge of building homes on the site, said it remained "committed" to the scheme.
Along with Urban Splash, the group behind the project is made up of Westmorland and Furness Council, landowners National Trust and the Lake District National Park Authority.
The Lib Dem-led council previously agreed a £9.95m funding deal with Homes England to fund highways work, which would enable the progression of the housing development.
But on Tuesday, council leader Jonathan Brook told cabinet members the grant agreement would not be taken forward because the scheme could not proceed to the timescale set by Homes England.
A spokesperson for the National Trust said it had run out of time to use funding.
"It's a really complex scheme with multiple elements at play," they said.
"We need enabling highways work to allow housing development to take place. Homes England have different funding pots for different things - the one we were wanting to use ends in March."
Farron said the delay was "massively frustrating but it's not the council's fault".
"The developers and their investors took so long that they eventually came to the point of view that the council would be more likely to achieve what we want with somebody else.
"Throughout the process, it's felt really hard to get the developers and their investors to really commit to genuinely affordable homes."
According to Homes England, affordable housing includes homes for sale or rent for people whose needs are not met by the private market.
Farron claimed developers had produced "a number of iterations" of plans for the housing element of the site, but those plans did not address what was actually needed in the area.
He said the "majority" of homes included in the plans "would not be affordable".
The BBC has requested clarification on the criteria used to define affordable housing.
A spokesperson for Urban Splash said while the delay was "disappointing", it was "proud to be development partner and remain committed to this scheme".
They added the developer would continue to work with the council and other stakeholders "to explore next steps".
