St Edmundsbury Core Strategy (December 2010)

elocation of West Suffolk Hospital and the need for a new Secondary School aremajor issues that the Area Action Plan will need to encompass.Developing the strategy - Issues and Options5.8 The Core Strategy Preferred Options Document (November 2008) consideredthe options for meeting the strategic growth of Bury St Edmunds as part of theoverall spatial strategy. The following options were examined:1 Mildenhall Road / Tut Hill;2 North of Westley (promoted for employment use only);3 Westley / Horringer edge;4 Rougham edge;5 Moreton Hall; and6 Compiegne Way, A1435.9 Each of these options was considered carefully against a range ofsustainability criteria including the provision, availability and potential to deliverdifferent levels of infrastructure, its potential impact on the environment and itsability to integrate fully with the existing built up area and bring benefits (CoreStrategy Submission Sustainability Appraisal). As part of the evaluation processthe Borough Council also worked with a range of stakeholders to assess theimpact and deliverability of infrastructure to meet the community‟s needs andproduced a number of evidence based studies which helped inform our finalselected strategy.5.10 This evaluation confirmed that:some of the options would not be available to deliver housing until later inthe plan period due to the need to deliver major infrastructure required bythe development;the identification of some sites for development could result in thecoalescence of Bury St Edmunds and surrounding villages unless appropriatepolicies were put in place to protect the physical limits of any newdevelopment;it was unlikely that one option alone could meet all the housing needrequirements of the town and a balanced supply of housing over the whole ofthe LDF period; andsome larger, long term releases would need to make provision for significantcommunity infrastructure as capacity in existing facilities would be reached.5.11 On this basis, all five options that would be capable of accommodatingadditional housing are being proposed for various levels of development duringthe plan period, but the capacity of each is to be determined by environmentalconsiderations that would seek to minimise their impact on environmental andinfrastructure capacity.Broad Locations for Growth5.12 The Key Diagram identifies the broad location for the future strategic growthof the town. These are sites that will primarily be capable of delivering a mix ofuses including homes, jobs, community and social facilities that will be developedover a longer period. The government describe strategic sites as those that are“central to the achievement of the strategy.” The Area Action Plan will need toprovide more detail about the boundaries and mix of uses to be accommodated inthese locations. However, the Area Action Plan will need to have regard to the65