A PUBLIC consultation was held at South Petherwin Village Hall on Monday, October 7 to allow members of the public to view the plans for the proposed development at Kennards House.

The proposal, under the applicant Kivells Ltd with agent Avison Young, comprises a new agri-business centre, agri-business employment units, agri-merchants, a trunk road service area and petrol station, hotel and replacement cricket pitch and pavilion with associated access, infrastructure, landscaping, drainage, service areas and parking. The land is at Kennards House, in the parish of South Petherwin, near Launceston.

As part of the planning process, Avison Young was approached by South Petherwin Parish Council, who requested a public consultation event to take place in the village in order to get views from members of the parish.

The exhibition took place at the village hall in South Petherwin on the evening of Monday, October 7, where people were able to drop in between 4.30pm and 7.30pm to speak with Kivells and Avison Young teams.

Rebecca Frayn, clerk to South Petherwin Parish Council, said following the event: “It went really well. Avison Young were really keen to come and speak with members of the community, which was really good.

“I think in total they had 47 people attend, and had 27 comments sheets filled in so they were able to collate all the comments to take back with them. It was pretty positive.”

Kevin Hicks, director of Kivells, was delighted with the success of the exhibition. He said: “It went really well. You never know with these things if people will turn up, but they did and there was a great turnout. Overall we have hardly had any objections at all, which when you consider the size of the development is pretty good. I think people were able to see the huge raft of benefits it will bring to the rural economy and the aspect of the design.”

However, there have been some concerns surrounding the future of South Petherwin’s cricket pitch, with a comment of objection being submitted to Cornwall Council on their planning website regarding the proposed relocation of the pitch to the far side of the development, which has been said to be close to the A30.

South Petherwin Cricket Club committee wrote: “The relocation of SPCC will have major implications for the club. The current square i.e. the area that the 10 playing strips are contained within, have taken SPCC’s groundsmen over 28 years to prepare to its current excellent playing condition. It is not possible to ‘pick up and move’ it.

“However, there are specialist firms which could be commissioned to undertake the installation of a new pitch square. SPCC have made enquiries into this and it will cost approximately £2,000 plus VAT per strip and a further £12,000 plus VAT for the outfield. That would mean a cost of £20,000 plus VAT for the cricket square and a further £12,000 plus VAT for the outfield — a combined outlay of £32,000 plus VAT. As with all rural clubs we do not have the financial availability to provide this ourselves and so if SPCC are to relocate to the proposed area, we must be supported financially for this essential commission.”

The committee continues by suggesting an area is fenced off within the proposed site for provision of a cricket square.

The committee added: “In terms of the cricket pavilion, supporting infrastructure and the current stores at the ground, SPCC do not believe that these are transferrable to the proposed new site. SPCC will therefore require the provision of a new club house pavilion with electricity, water and drainage. The pavilion will need home and away team changing rooms as well as an umpire changing room. There will need to be a kitchen and dining area for the players’ use at ‘tea’, which is of course as important to the game as the pitch itself.

“A further concern for the new site would be its close proximity to the A30. We believe that we would need protective netting to prevent balls being hit onto the road, similar to that at Exeter Chiefs just off the M5 motorway.”

However, Mr Hicks said: “We have always been keen to keep the cricket pitch in the development, and the design shows exactly that. We met members of the cricket club who made their views known and we were able to discuss the plans with them.

“Launceston Town Council came and were very supportive. This is the only one (consultation event) which we will be doing, but we felt that we should do it as it involves the South Petherwin parish.”

Overall the event was a positive move for the proposal. Mr Hicks added: “The consultation evening was well attended and gave us a viable opportunity to discuss points of the scheme with local people and genuinely engage in discussion with them.

“We have received an incredible level of support for the scheme and no principal objections which when considering the scale of the proposal is very rewarding, and we think attribute to the huge raft of benefits the scheme can deliver for all sectors of the rural economy and for the area.”

Phil Parsons, South Petherwin Parish Council chairman, said: “South Petherwin Parish Council were presented with the most significant planning application of a generation, Kivells, new Agri Centre at Kennards House. The council gave due consideration and support for South Petherwin Cricket Club, located on the site but at the same time welcomed the benefits this application would bring. This includes the provision to invest in the rural economy and provide a single location for the local farming community both in North Cornwall and across the border in Devon and further a field.

“The applicants have given due weight to the impact such an application would have on the landscape and created as environmentally sensitive site as is possible while providing the opportunity to link with local food and services to connect with the new ‘Gloucester Type’ service station. The council awaits the detailed application which will lay out the next stage in detail of the application.”

For more information about the scheme, search the application — PA19/06624 — on Cornwall Council’s planning portal.

What do you think of the proposals for Kennards House? Do you think a new agricultural business site will be a beneficial asset to the local area, or will it cause disruption? Email [email protected]