EAST SUFFOLK LOCAL PLAN MODIFICATIONS OUT FOR COMMENT
East Suffolk Council - Suffolk Coastal Local Plan
Consultation on Main Modifications
The Suffolk Coastal Local Plan is currently being examined by an Independent Planning Inspector, Philip Lewis BA (Hons) MSc MRTPI. Following the public hearings which were held in August / September 2019, the Inspector has written to the Council advising what modifications are likely to be required in order for the plan to be found 'sound'.
Before the Inspector can finalise his conclusions on the soundness of the Plan, Main Modifications alongside an Addendum to the Sustainability Appraisal Report and an updated Habitats Regulations Assessment of the modifications have been published for consultation. A tracked change version of the Final Draft Local Plan, which incorporates all proposed modifications, has also been published for reference purposes.
In view of the current Covid-19 social distancing measures, the Council has set out measures to enable safe participation in the consultation and to ensure that those who wish to engage in the consultation are not disadvantaged. This includes holding the consultation for an extended period of ten weeks and putting measures in place relating to the provision of the hard copies of documents. The Council would normally make hard copies of consultation documents available to view in libraries and in the Council's offices for those who are unable to view them online, however as this is not possible to do this at this time the Council has put alternative measures in place. The arrangements are detailed below.
The consultation is being held for an extended period of ten weeks and runs from 2pm on Friday 1stMay until 5pm on Friday 10th July 2020.
Comments must be received by 5pm on Friday 10th July 2020. Comments will be sent in their entirety to the Independent Planning Inspector. Comments will also be published online, although personal details will be removed.
To find out more about the consultation, view the consultation documents and submit comments, visitwww.eastsuffolk.gov.uk/localplanexamination.
Comments can be submitted online via the website above or can alternatively be emailed toplanningpolicy@eastsuffolk.gov.uk or can be sent to the Planning Policy and Delivery Team at East Suffolk Council, Riverside, 4 Canning Road, Lowestoft, NR33 0EQ. A comments form is available to download from the website or a hard copy can be sent to you on request.
NOTE:
Alongside the consultation on Main Modifications, the Council has also published a number of proposed 'Additional Modifications' which it wishes to make to the plan prior to adoption. These 'Additional Modifications' do not materially alter the policies of the plan and are generally minor clarifications and corrections of factual errors. The Council would welcome any comments on these additional modifications. However, please note the Inspector will not be considering comments made on the additional modifications.
A number of changes are also proposed to the Policies Maps to take into account 'Main Modifications' and 'Additional Modifications' and to make factual or presentational amendments. A schedule of these has been published together with revised Policies Maps incorporating the proposed changes. The Council would also welcome any comments on these during the consultation period above.
The Schedule of Proposed Additional Modifications and Schedule of Proposed Policies Map Modifications are available to view via the methods set out above. Comments can be submitted online, by email to planningpolicy@eastsuffolk.gov.uk or by post to East Suffolk Council, Riverside, 4 Canning Road, Lowestoft, NR33 0EQ and must also be submitted by 5pm on Friday 10th July 2020.
The Council has submitted to the Inspector responses to his questions and additional evidence as required through the Examination. These are available to view in the Document Library on the Examination pages of the Council's website.
It should be noted that this consultation is not an opportunity to re-state previous representations, as these have already been considered as part of the examination. This is also not an opportunity to raise new objections to the submitted Local Plan. This consultation is purely on the modifications and it is only these which are available for comment.
The Planning Policy and Delivery Team (currently operating under a voicemail service) can be contacted on 01394 444557.
Yours sincerely
Andrea McMillan
Principal Planner
East Suffolk Council
01394 444567
www.eastsuffolkmeansbusiness.co.uk
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