Published: 06:15, 29 May 2022
Updated: 7:10 AM May 29, 2022
It is one of Norwich’s largest housing projects in decades, bringing thousands of homes and jobs to the city. Now the head of the council in charge of East Norwich’s master plan is talking to GEORGE THOMPSON about the next steps, as he is taking a significant step forward.
The East Norwich Master Plan (ENM) is a plan to guide the development of large urban sites, which is expected to bring about 3,600 homes and 4,000 jobs.
And early next month, Norwich City Council’s cabinet is asked to sign the final stage and move the project forward.
The scheme covers four key areas in the east of Norwich – Carrow Works, home of the former Colman’s and Britvic factories; the Deal Ground and May Gurney sites in Trowse; and the utility facility between Thorpe Hamlet and Whitlingham.
We spoke with Mike Stanard, head of Norwich City Council, behind the project to find out what’s next.
What is happening?
“Proposals have moved significantly forward and momentum is being accelerated by all participants who want to see the realization of this vision of housing, employment and leisure, creating a new lively and sustainable urban neighborhood near the city center,” the cabinet member said. .
On June 8, the cabinet will be asked to sign a second phase and an additional planning document that will help give the project legal weight.
What next?
Along with the signing of the second phase of the ENM, the cabinet will be asked to continue the scheme and continue to develop the evidence base.
“We are now moving on to the third stage, which will be led by Homes England [a government agency] – they are a key partner.
“We will seek financial support and ensure that the whole project is viable. Homes England is used to projects of this scale and we will help with project management.
“When you have four adjacent sites, we need to make sure that all the infrastructure – transport, electricity, water – is planned together for economies of scale and consistency.”
By next year, Mr Stonard hopes the scheme will be included in the Greater Norwich Local Plan (GNLP) – which outlines where development may be acceptable in Norwich – giving weight to the scheme in the planning law.
What will this mean for Norwich?
The council’s ambition is to create a new urban neighborhood that uses low-energy solutions, provides high-quality pedestrian, bicycle and public transport links to the city and Broads, and provides a good combination of housing and property types.
“It’s not often that you get abandoned sites that you can develop this way,” he said. “Where we don’t have environmental or heritage restrictions, it’s a blank slate.
“We want to make sure it’s as sustainable as possible.
“Where the heritage building is, we can use them to create some historic street landscapes that will be really beautiful.”
The ENM also aims to ensure that flood mitigation, climate resilience and green infrastructure are included in the proposals from the outset.
The proposals also hope to provide a community center, primary school, health shops and other local services, as well as green spaces and improved access to the Wensum River.
How about nutrient neutrality?
Officials and advisers are trying to assess the impact of a recent Natural England directive on local authorities to ensure that all new homes are ‘nutrient neutral’ and do not add harmful substances to rivers and wetlands.
This move has led to uncertainty about the proposed housing construction.
But Mr Stonard hopes the ENM will avoid serious impact because there is time to work out mitigation measures.
“We hope we can resolve this issue by spring and work with other affected councils and talk to Natural England.”
What is the scale of development?
“It’s a huge development and that’s why we’ve put so much work into it – it’s the biggest development in the East of England,” he said.
On 50 acres, Mr Stonard said the site is the size of more than 80 football pitches.
“Apart from Carrow House, the rest of it is owned by private companies. They could all start on their own, but this will not provide coherence and infrastructure to support it.
“Attracting them is so important that they came to the table with us along with people like Network Rail, Broads Authority and Homes England.”
What jobs will be created?
While Mr Stonard said he hoped to see high-tech jobs as computer graphic design, he promised that the plans would create a combination of jobs.
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