PLANS to build a further 170 homes as part of a major housing development between Cwmbran and Pontypool have been given the green light.

A reserved matters application for the latest phase of development at South Sebastopol was unanimously approved by Torfaen council’s planning committee on Thursday.

The application relates to the second phase of development on land in the Wren’s Nest character area, which is west of Cwmbran Drive, with the first, making up 188 homes, already approved.

A mix of two-, three- and four-bedroom semi-detached and detached houses are included, along with eight apartments.

Eighteen of the homes would be classed as ‘affordable’, making up around 10 per cent of the development.

Councillors deferred making a decision on the plans last month to allow for a site visit to take place.

Questions over a canal bridge planned as part of the development were raised at the planning committee meeting last month.

At Thursday’s meeting, Helen Smith, principal planner at Torfaen council, confirmed that the location of the bridge would be outlined as part of a future planning application.

Cllr Gwyn Jenkins thanked planning officers for arranging the site visit, which he said was “very informative”.

The homes will be of the same design as those being built in the first phase of the Wren’s Nest development.

The site is made up of agricultural fields, also including hedgerows and woodland, with a section lying next to the Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal conservation area.

A 40-metre buffer zone next to the canal has been included, in accordance with a planning condition agreed in the outline application.

All of the properties will have designated parking, and most will benefit from a garage, according to a planning report.

The plans form part of a masterplan for 1,200 homes being built in South Sebastopol, which was given outline planning permission in 2014.

This section of the development takes the total number of homes with planning consent to more than 1,000.

Five reserved matters applications – which outline details such as the design and layout of the development – have already been approve for the scheme – for 210, 102, 143, 189 and 228 homes respectively.

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