A RESIDENTS' group is urging more people to scrutinise plans to build 1,400 homes on former green belt land on the outskirts of Chester.

So far just eight people have sent comments to the Cheshire West and Chester Council (CWaC) planning team – of which six opposed the scheme and one supported it.

Westminster Park Residents Association (WPRA) believes too many people have not “woken up” to the fact that the development on Wrexham Road could go ahead virtually unchallenged.

Members claim the new housing estate proposed by Redrow Homes could create traffic misery on a busy road that often becomes gridlocked at peak times.

One of the eight representations received by the council is from the Duke of Westminster's Grosvenor Estate which has raised several concerns.

As reported by the Standard in August, the estate is worried that the affordable homes element of the plan would be delivered too late in the project's timescale.

It also questioned whether planned infrastructure changes and upgrades were adequate to cope with the new homes and the hundreds of families that would occupy them.

Redrow Homes has already lodged a planning application for phase one of the scheme, which would see 509 homes built on Wrexham Road on the southern edge of the city.

It would also include a shopping centre, supermarket, restaurant, pub, health centre, nursery and primary school with playing fields.

WPRA has stressed the plans can be viewed by members of the public online or in hard copy at Lache library.

The group's chairman, Pauline Brown, said: “A lot of people have still not woken up to the fact that this development will go ahead and it will have a huge impact on the traffic both south and north of the River Dee.

“This new estate will be almost twice the size of Westminster Park and the number of vehicle journeys that it is going to generate will be enormous.

“Quite apart from people commuting to work, in the early stages of development, while there is no school, shops or health centre on the estate, people will need to reach all of these facilities via the Wrexham Road on a daily basis.

“Westminster Park Residents’ Association is encouraging everyone to go and look at the plans and consider their own response.

“We are all going to be affected by this development and now is the time to make CWaC aware of our views.”

The group has organised a public meeting which will be held at Westminster Park Community Centre at 8pm on Wednesday.

Mrs Brown added: “We are keen to put forward a response to the council that is representative of our residents’ views and hope that they come along in force.

“Although traffic impact is a big issue, there are also other aspects of these plans that people need to look at including how the development will affect the provision of education and healthcare in the area, how the drainage and ecology of the area will be managed and how the archaeological assets of the site will be conserved.”

People can view the plans on the council's website by searching for planning application 17/02453/OUT. The application will be considered by the council’s planning committee at a future date.