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26 November 2017 / Club News

Latest News on Community Benefits

Laugharne Athletic Club News

This report has been written in order to keep the community informed of the progress being made in our fight to secure the community benefits signed up to by Mr & Mrs Thomas in 2004 and subsequeny Planning Application and S106 Agreement in 2008..

At the Planning Committee Meeting on 16th November.2017 the Planning Officers Report outlined the history of this application which laid the foundation for the County Councillors to start to understand the complicated history of this planning case. We do feel that the committee need to know more about this history before they make a final decsion and we will have the opportunity when they next meet after a site meeting (date to be agreed). 

To date the Laugharne Athletic Club believe they have been very reserved in their approach to pursuing the Thomas's and the County Council to include the original benefits in this new application and at the start agreed to have limited press coverage until a final decision is taken by the County Council on this matter. We have also made available to the Council the Expert Advice Reports which were sought to help prove our case is valid and this is not just a Land Ownership Issue.

Further to this, we sought Counsel Opinion on the Planning Officers Report issued to the Planning Committee on 16th and we have submitted this document to the Council for them to consider before the final meeting.

The club and the community organisations are adamant that these benefits and the long term future of the playing field needs to be resolved through this planning process.

The community benefits that were secured through the original planning applaction was as a result of extensive discussions between various local parties and linked to the fact that the site at that time was located outside of the settlement boundary for Laugharne and was not allocated for development in the then Unitary Development Plan (UDP). The Community Benefits Package that was signed up to by ALL PARTIES was considered to be of sufficient weight as a material consideration to outweigh the departure from the then UDP and allow them to develop the land and benefit financially.

The Laugharne Athletic Club and the Laugharne community consider legally and morally this previously agreed package of community benefits which are still much needed, must be again included as a binding commitment in any planning approval the Council decide to grant in respect of this latest application. We believe that co-operation by all the parties involved will make this possible to the benefit of everyone involved.

Having taken extensive advice, the Club has concluded that there is no valid reason why Carmarthenshire County Council Planning Officers cannot change it's opinion and agree to recommend to the Planning Committee approval to the above application subject to a binding agreement that the landowners will provide the local community benefits as previously agreed and included in the September 2008 S106 Agreement as soon as practical after the issue of the Planning Approval.

The club looks forward to receiving the date of the next meeting and a chance to give our account of the issues in the documents provided to the County Council Senior Officers.

Laugharne Athletic Club Committee.

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David Pearce - 26/11/2017 19:31:46:

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