The council intends to build more than 4,000 houses at Thornhill Lees
The first phase of development on the proposed Dewsbury Riverside housing scheme could be a step closer.
It follows the submission of a planning application by Kirklees Council for works to create site access from Forge Lane and Ravensthorpe Road to land it owns.
Up to 350 homes are earmarked for this section of the overall scheme.
As part of its controversial Local Plan the council intends to build more than 4,000 houses at Thornhill Lees between Ravensthorpe and Mirfield.
The 70 acres of land off Ravensthorpe Road, which is council-owned, is earmarked for approximately 1,869 homes to be built over the next 11 years.
It will involve the demolition of a mosque and playgroup, and the removal of allotments, which will be replaced at a cost of more than £1m. Construction on new plots is scheduled to start before the end of this year.
The remaining 2,131 homes will be built after the council has bought a further 11.5 acres of land, which is owned by the Diocese of Leeds, part of the Church of England.
The council’s “hybrid” application has been submitted to its own planning department. It requests full planning permission for engineering works, drainage and utilities connection for the provision of site access from Forge Lane and Ravensthorpe Road.
It also asks for outline planning permissions for up to 350 homes and a mixed-use development with community facilities.
Clr Peter McBride, the council’s Cabinet Member for Regeneration said the Riverside application marks an exciting step forward for this development.
His colleague Clr Cathy Scott, the council’s Cabinet Member for Housing, said she was pleased to see progress on the huge scheme.
She said: With Dewsbury Riverside we’re creating something truly unique and innovative, with the good-quality housing we need, in a new community, complete with the facilities and infrastructure needed alongside it.
