Homes approved in Wheldrake, near Millfield Industrial Estate

Plans to build 139 houses near Millfield industrial estate have been approved by City of York Council.

The homes will be built in the York village of Wheldrake, east of Millfield industrial estate, where Village Green Preserves operates and can produce “relatively strong” food odours.

A planning committee report reads: “It is considered that some odours produced from Village Green Preserves (such as curry) could have an impact on future residents if the wind direction dispersed the odours towards the housing.”

At a planning committee meeting on Wednesday, December 6, council officer Neil Massey said: “The applicant has agreed that occasionally, depending on what’s being cooked, there can be smells from the unit and the applicant said they’d pay for a ventilation system.”

He added: “The quality of it would be agreed with us to make sure it addresses any concerns in terms of odours.”

Further concerns were also raised over the village’s capacity for more residents.

The people of Wheldrake have travelled to the next village along, Elvington, to see a doctor since their local GP surgery closed during the Covid-19 pandemic.

According to Cllr Christian Vassie, the new homes could increase the population by between 15 and 20 per cent.

“Everyone in Wheldrake has to get in a private car to get to the doctors,” he said.

“There’s no alternative.

“If you get a bus you have to wait in Elvington for two, three or four hours to get a bus back.”

Cllr Vassie said he recognised York needed more homes, but said they needed to be future-proofed.

Millfield Ind. Estate. Pic: Google Maps

Suzie Mercer, a resident of Wheldrake for 30 years and a former councillor, said: “I object to the proposed application as Wheldrake is situated on C-roads, all of which are not adequate for the current level of transport that we have to endure, and the inevitable increase in traffic that this development will create will undoubtedly become intolerable.”

She also claimed that schools and drainage systems would find it difficult to cope.

Liam Tate, planning manager at developers Barratt and David Wilson Homes, said: “We fully appreciate we need to ensure the impacts are minimised.”

Mr Tate said that £1.5 million would go towards additional infrastructure around the development, saying: “These will be put towards Elvington doctors' surgery, for example, and the local primary school.

“It will also be put towards the bus service so it goes from an hourly service to a twice hourly service.”

Mr Tate said that 30 per cent of the houses would be affordable and five per cent would be self-builds.

There will be eight one-bed houses, 29 two-beds, 65 three-beds and 37 four-beds.