New Cardiff housing scheme given the go-ahead

New Housing Estate

A new housing scheme in Cardiff has been given the go-ahead by the Welsh Government and Cardiff Council's ruling Labour party.

The Cardiff Deposit Local Development (LDP) agreed by the government will see around 41,000 new homes and more than 40,000 jobs created by 2026. The new housing will be split across a number of areas in Cardiff including a greenbelt area of protected land that is situated north of the M4.

The Welsh Government and Cardiff Council have agreed that because of the city’s predicted growth over the next few years, more homes are needed. 14,000 homes are going to be built on greenfield sites, including 5,000 to the west of Pentrebane, 5,800 homes either side of Pontprennau and 2,650 to the south of Creigiau.

Although Cardiff has seen a number of redevelopments and new developments in recent times, particularly in Cardiff Bay and the city centre, this new LDP is one of the most expansive and controversial, due to the planned development on greenfield sites.

LDP could have a serious impact on the city of Cardiff

The LDP plans have been heavily criticised by many people within the community. The biggest criticism being that the LDP plans are not council-led: rather they are being pushed forward by the Welsh Government who know little about the city. The housing plans have also been criticised because the increased population will likely cause gridlock on the country’s already congested motorway network, while reducing the number of green spaces available in and outside the city.

Councillors have spoken out about the plans, questioning the lack of details about the infrastructure and transportation networks that will need to be built to support such an increase in Cardiff’s population.

Neil McEvoy, Fairwater’s Plaid Cymru councillor has said:

“Every Labour councillor is voting to destroy the green lungs of our city. This is the beginning of the end of the city that we know and love, Cardiff. It’s also the beginning of the end of our communities”.

Regardless of the criticism, the Labour Council has remained defiant, saying that Cardiff is a major factor in the Welsh economy and that it’s a very desirable place to live, so it’s not a surprise that new housing is always going to be required. They have also announced that there are plans to build a tram system in order to accommodate the new houses.

Defending the plans, Councillor Graham Hinchey warned that without the new houses there wouldn’t be any money for an improved Cardiff.

“Without the houses where is the money going to come from? We need those houses to build the infrastructure – it’s the chicken and egg conundrum”.

02 October 2013

The information contained within this article was correct at the date of publishing and is not guaranteed to remain correct in the present day.

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