In January 2016, Troy Planning + Design along with Three Dragons were appointed to prepare a Local Plan and CIL Viability Assessment for Waverley Borough Council.
The Council requires a viability assessment of the Local Plan to assess whether the vision and policies proposed in the draft Local Plan are realistic and viable. Our viability assessment helps the Council identify financial barriers to delivering development and ensures the Local Plan can respond flexibly to changing markets and avoid the need for frequent plan updating.
The key topics covered in addressing the Council’s requirements included establishing whether the number and distribution of new homes and additional employment space could realistically be developed in the locations and on the type of land proposed. This was considered against the cumulative impact of the up-to-date costs of meeting the requirements of policies and standards in the Publication Local Plan on the financial feasibility of development.
Testing specifically takes account of the need for affordable housing across a range of tenures, meeting the cost requirements for other infrastructure associated with development and mitigating the impact of development on Special Protection Areas. The assessment also allows the Council to explore different standards for design and test the implications for development at different densities.
Along with testing a range of notional sites and conditions for typical development locations, our brief also required specific viability modelling of the proposed large-scale strategic allocation for mixed-use development at Dunsfold Aerodrome. This included taking account of specific infrastructure costs and considering the rates of development associated with the scheme.
Our Report was delivered in summer 2016 and supported the Council’s Pre-Submission Consultation on its emerging Local Plan, which has now been submitted and is undergoing Examination in Public.
