Plans for Interchange 55 business park in Sproughton considered by councillors
The plans could create up to 500 jobs - but will mean an increase in traffic
A planned industrial park in Suffolk will be put to councillors today, as they weigh up the potential for 500 new jobs against traffic problems.
Babergh District Council’s planning committee will decide whether to approve Interchange 55, a planned industrial and business park off the A14 and London Road in Sproughton.
The outline planning application by Poplar Holdings Ltd & Building Partnerships Ltd includes six large building blocks across a site of almost eight hectares.
The proposals are opposed by nearby parish councils and the district councillor for the area, largely on the basis of traffic problems. Officers recommend approval.
In a planning statement, the applicant said: “Interchange 55 will generate significant levels of employment during construction and operational phases as well as significant benefits to the local economy.
“It is anticipated that more than 500 jobs will be created when Interchange 55 is fully built.
“The site is well located to serve the employment needs of this part of the urban fringe.
“There is already significant market interest in Interchange 55. Suffolk County Council would like to use a block for storage purposes and Thomson and Morgan has expressed an interest in using a significant proportion of the site for its UK Headquarters.”
Seed and plant company Thompson and Morgan already have a site to the north of the proposed development.
Cllr Richard Hardacre, ward member for Sproughton and Pinewood, said in objection: “The plans would generate an unacceptable level of traffic resulting in congestion, noise and pollution.
“This will be on top of the existing oversaturated set of roundabouts within Copdock Interchange, on the London Road and further afield – including on Scrivener Drive.
“These roads are already at capacity even without including the newly approved McDonalds yet to be built and the former Toys-R-Us and Mothercare buildings which may come into occupancy at little notice.
“This development would also represent the final destruction of what remaining green land there is within the enclosure of the A14, when taking the Wolsey Grange developments into account.
“This land should instead be rewilded, with new tree planting to reduce particulate and noise pollution while contributing to fighting climate change.”
Cllr David Busby, who represents Copdock and Washbrook, also objects due to traffic pressures.
The Wosley Grange site referred to by the councillor is an expected residential development that has outline planning permission, which will sit one hundred metres from the north eastern edge of the business park.
There are also seven homes on London Road to the south east of the site, which would be the nearest properties to the park. A landscape buffer is planned to lessen the impact on those living here.
Vehicles would access the site via the London Road, the roundabouts on Scrivener Drive and by Tesco, and a planned junction to the site and the nearby park and ride.
In the report to be discussed by councillors, officers accept there would be “significant” traffic impact from the development on local roads but maintain that neither Suffolk County Council’s highways authority not National Highways stated this would be severe.
Another issue is the fact that the medieval chapel of Felchurch used to sit within the site. According to the council’s archaeological officer, the area where the chapel was has high archaeological importance.
Seven human remains were found in what was the churchyard, during excavation as part of the application process.
The developer has put forward a plan for a car park to cover the area, which will be constructed in a way that does not disturb the human remains.
The council’s archaeological officer is also proposing a series of conditions, to be implemented depending on what the developer proposes for the area at later application stages.
The officers’ report sets out expectations for 500 jobs to be created once the industrial park is built, and explains local employees will be supported by frequent bus services to the nearby park and ride and Tesco.