The failed £40m Ballasalla development proposal should not be seen as a victory, says Malew Commissioners clerk Barry Powell, for it will delay the first-time buyer housing needed in the village.

The proposal involved knocking down the 1940s public sector housing at Clagh Vane and building 65 public sector properties.

Sheltered accommodation would have been built on the site of the school, which would move to another area of the estate.

The local authority objected to the plan for the 257 mixed housing development that included 90 higher priced and 102 first-time buyer houses on land at Crossag Farm because they felt it was over intensive.

They also felt the provision of open space was insufficient and the plan was premature pending a southern area plan, said Mr Powell.

All these points were echoed by independent inspector John Turner, whose recommendation to refuse the plans was supported by the Council of Ministers last week.

Local Government and the Environment Minister John Shimmin said he was devastated by the decision.

He warned: 'It will have a major impact on our ability to deliver improvements to public sector housing and to make available a large number of first-time buyers' homes for young people.'

However, Mr Powell said the first phase of the development focused on private housing.

'Private sector was going to be built first rather than first-time buyer or public sector housing, which is a priority,' he said.

He added that to build private sector homes when first-time buyer
housing was urgently needed, seemed to go against what the government wanted.

'If there is a need, they should be focussing on that,' said Mr Powell.

Also, as the development would swell the number of houses in the village by a third, Mr Powell said the plan should have included details about a new primary school and bypass.

'We have always said that land is zoned for residential and it needs to be developed. This plan was just wrong. We need an infrastructure like schools and social services before we increase the village by a third.

'It seems silly to put in a plan in the first place, knowing they have to do the southern sector plan. It does seem daft.

'We do not see the commissioners or objectors have won. At the end of the day, we are not getting the first-time buyer or public sector housing we need. We do not see it as a battle we want to win. It's a question of getting the right balance of development in the village.

Unfortunately, this has delayed it for the first-time buyer housing, which is what we need.

'The inspector's assessment was fairly balanced. We are glad to see common sense has prevailed and look forward to another plan that is not over-intensive and does include primary education and social services.'