60-home scheme set for green light

Plans for a 60-home development at a site in Ipswich which has lain vacant since the closure of the Tooks Bakery factory have been recommended for approval by planning officers.All the former buildings at 731 Old Norwich Road have been demolished and the land is cleared.The proposal is for a conventional housing development of 60 dwellings comprised of flats, bungalows and predominantly houses with public open space/ estate roads and the remaining two acres of the Tooks site is planned for a healthcare building.Ipswich Borough Council is the freeholder of the land and the housing scheme is part of the authority’s ten-year housing plan.The proposal has been recommended for approval next week subject to the signing of a section 106 legal agreement which includes:£40,000 contribution towards provision of a remodelled old Norwich Road /Bury Road junction;A £10,000 contribution to Traffic Regulation OrderA £21,758 NHS contributionA £146,172 Primary school contribution;£36,542 Pre-school contribution; and£12,000 library contribution.Planning officers said the development would contribute generally to reducing housing shortages and particularly help to meet affordable housing need.