Plymouth City Council has been found to have broken the law over its decision to approve a housing scheme at Wilmot Gardens.
The plans would have seen mature trees cut down and a much-loved green space in the Crownhill area of Plymouth lost to a housing development.
The High Court has now quashed the planning permission for five homes after ruling the council failed to secure a condition to keep the proposed homes affordable.
The development also included plans to fell several trees, including a Category A oak tree.
Local resident Frank Hartkopf, who brought the judicial review against Plymouth City Council, has been awarded more than £13,000 in legal costs after the court found his claim was justified.
High Court Judge, His Honour Judge Keyser KC ruled that the council’s decision was unlawful. In judgement he said:
"The provision of affordable housing as set out in the Planning Officer’s report was a material planning consideration, and the failure to include such a condition rendered the decision unlawful.
"The Defendant failed to provide reasons for departing from the Planning Officer’s advice in respect of the provision of affordable housing.
"I remain of the view that it is appropriate for Mr Hartkopf to receive a costs order in his favour.
"For the reasons he gives, he ought to be entitled to recover his costs of pre-action correspondence and of filing a claim in order to protect his (and the wider) interests".
With the planning permission now quashed, no tree felling can currently take place at Wilmot Gardens. The future of the trees still remains uncertain as they are not currently protected by a Tree Preservation Order.
Campaigners have said that their request for a Tree Preservation Order has still not been decided despite it being made more than a year ago.
The land at Wilmot Gardens was sold by the council to developer Darren Wills for just £70,000, despite higher offers reportedly being available.
Wills submitted the planning application, but the council failed to list him properly in legal proceedings. The court later corrected this.
More than 50 formal objections were submitted to the application. Residents cited biodiversity loss, traffic, lack of play space, and non-compliance with council policies.
Now that the original planning permission has been struck out, the application will return to the planning committee. Councillors, mostly from the Labour group, must decide whether to revise, resubmit, or drop the proposal entirely.
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