On Thursday, October 3, residents will have their opportunity to cast a vote in a referendum to accept or reject the Neighbourhood Plan.
The Neighbourhood Plan is a powerful tool that gives communities such as Malton and Norton statutory powers to help with their development. It’s a document that’s written by the local community, the people who know and love the area, rather than the Local Planning Authority – North Yorkshire Council.
The vision in the Neighbourhood Plan is based on the rich heritage and culture of Malton and Norton from their historical origins.
It states:
– New housing and employment growth and opportunities will be enabled, within the context of an even higher quality environment and improved infrastructure
– New and improved road, cycling and pedestrian links and the promotion of active travel will help alleviate traffic congestion and air pollution in our town centres
– Tourism which is vital to our towns will continue to grow powered by the twin engines of heritage and culture
– The local food and horse-racing industries which are so much a part of the towns and their hinterland will be supported and developed further
– The three conservation areas will be better protected and their appearance and character enhanced by new development and other improvements
– The River Derwent is the other jewel in our crown. The vision is of a Derwent that floods less (or not at all), remains ecologically rich but which offers sympathetic riverside enhancements and the positive use of under-utilised riverside land.
At root, the vision states that people in our towns should be able to freely enjoy an abundance of simple pleasures in a well-supported and fully serviced community.
The Mayor of Malton, Councillor Ian Conlan said: “I strongly urge residents to cast a vote at the referendum on the 3 October. The Neighbourhood Plan is a powerful tool that gives communities such as Malton and Norton statutory powers to help with their development. It’s a document that’s written by the local community, the people who know and love the area, rather than the Local Planning Authority. It’s a powerful tool to help ensure that our community gets the right types of development, in the right place”.
If supported by a majority the Neighbourhood Plan will be adopted and will become part of the formal statutory planning framework. This means that all planning decisions will need to take into account the policies set out in the Plan. With the loss of Ryedale District Council and the formation of North Yorkshire Council and concerns about the loss of local representation this provides our towns with very important safeguards. An adopted Neighbourhood Plan will also provide additional funding through the Community Infrastructure Levy to be spent locally.
The Mayor of Norton, Councillor Di Keal said: “This is a very important milestone for our communities. A huge community effort has gone in to making this plan involving residents, businesses, community groups, schools and churches – to find out what is important to us where we live, what we’d like to improve, and what our vision is for the local area. The planning policies in the plan will be used to inform planning applications, with North Yorkshire Council our Local Planning Authority. I also strongly urge residents to cast a vote at the referendum on the 3 October.”
To view the plan go to https://www.malton-tc.gov.uk/malton-norton-neighbourhood-plan/
