PLANS have been unveiled to build 72 homes in the west of Carlisle, during a period of unprecedented growth for the district.

Gleeson Homes Ltd has revealed its latest set of plans for Carlisle, and this time the developer is looking to build 72 homes on land off Wigton Road.

An application for planning permission has been submitted to Carlisle City Council regarding the development, which the developer hopes will have major economic benefits in the area.

Gleeson Homes has included a report on the economic benefits of the development in their submission.

They say that the 72 additional homes will bring £114,674 in extra council tax annually, 75 sustained or created direct jobs and a £104,636 New Homes Bonus for one year.

All of the new dwellings will be family homes and are made up of a mixture of sizes, 31 of which will be three bed semi-detached.

Gleeson Homes will provide 21 affordable homes in the development. It is a requirement for developers to include affordable housing in 30 per cent of any development.

Care has been taken to design the development “sensitively” to avoid impacting on existing residents nearby.

“The proposed layout ensures that the minimum separation distances, outlined in the Achieving Well-Designed Housing SPD, can be met and in some cases exceeded.

“The application site is adjacent to a neighbouring residential area. It is not considered that there would be any conflict between the proposed new homes and the existing uses in the area.”

In the planning statement Gleeson Homes has pointed to the Carlisle Local Plan 2015-2030 which allocates the site for development.

Gleeson Homes said that care has been taken to plan a connected estate which is sensitive to the existing surroundings.

In their design and access statement, the developer said: "As you travel through the site you’re greeted by long range views of the North Pennines Area of Natural Beauty, through landscaped areas and strong visual vistas of the dwellings.

"Consideration for both vehicular and pedestrian users has been taken to give separation between both users from various parts of the site.

"The use of open spaces within the site creates compression and relief as well as communal areas for recreational use delivering a strong sense of community for the development.

"This has been further enhanced by selective planting and hard surface treatment to divide the development in to distinctive areas."

The proposed Southern Link Road between the M6 and Newby West will run adjacent to the development.

As a statutory consultee, National Highways were approached for a comment on the proposal as part of the application process.

The authority had no comment to make as "it is some distance from the nearest Strategic Road Network."

Northern Gas Networks has raised no objections but requested that the developer get in touch if plans are approved as construction may see apparatus put at risk.

The supplier will inform Gleeson Homes of construction requirements to avoid damage to the gas network.