Leicester Council's New Housing Plan: Green Spaces vs. Growth

0:00Lester City Council is poised to approve a new local plan this Thursday, outlining sites for thousands of homes over the next 10 years. The plan aims to meet a government target of 20,730 homes by 2036, as the city's population grows. It earmarks land for 3,362 new homes, plus another 7,188 that already have. Permission The strategy focuses more than 6,000 homes in the city center and 4 big sites on the edges, like a former golf course for 400, 12 homes and industrial space, and another spot for 670 homes plus a school. But the council admits it can't fit everything inside city limits, leaving an unmet need of 18,694 homes that, neighboring areas in Lestershire would need to handle. Local campaigners and residents are pushing back hard, saying the plan threatens key green spaces full of wildlife, like badgers and deer. They argue brownfield sites haven't been fully used,

1:01and worry about flooding from big developments. A conservative counselor called one proposal, desecration, backed by a petition with 3,300 signatures. Council leaders counter that, 71% of housing goes on brownfield land in stress. This is just the high level blueprint, not final. Go ahead for any projects. They plan to make 30% of new homes affordable, and will work with developers while kicking off a fresh review soon after adoption. Residents can still weigh in on individual applications down the line, balancing growth needs with green protection in this ongoing push. That's the story for today. Lester News Today, driven by AI, I'm Corey with The Story.