West Suffolk Council has said it plans to serve two Breach of Condition Notices on Persimmon Homes after 'a string of delays' to the £10m Haverhill Relief Road.
The authority said the developer 'could face court proceedings and an unlimited fine unless it holds to its latest timetable to deliver a relief road in Haverhill'.
The relief road was originally due to be completed by March 2023 but the completion date was reportedly pushed back by Persimmon, firstly to Spring 2024, then September 2024 and now apparently to the end of the year.
Cllr Jim Thorndyke, cabinet member for planning at West Suffolk Council, said: 'We have seen delay after delay and excuse after excuse. I am frustrated, annoyed and disappointed by this latest delay by the developers.
'We know how important this relief road is to the community and to the sustainable growth of the town and we want it delivered without further setback. Through serving this notice, our expectation is this delay will be the last.
'We have previously discussed enforcement action based on what material harm may or may not be caused to the highway network but the advice from Suffolk County Council highways is that there isn’t sufficient impact caused to back enforcement action.
'But the truth remains that the road should already be open by now, that Persimmon is in breach of its planning conditions and this continuous cycle of delay is resulting in a lack of public confidence in the planning system.
'We are now in a position where we can demonstrate that it is both expedient and in the public intertest to serve a formal Breach of Condition Notice to Persimmon, to ensure they stick to the latest delivery timetable they have now put forward.'
A spokesperson for Persimmon Homes said: 'We are fully committed to the delivery of the Haverhill Relief Road and would like to apologise to residents for the delay. We are working as quickly as possible to complete the road despite several significant challenges outside of our control.
'Throughout this process, we have also sought to work constructively with West Suffolk and Suffolk County Council, as well as our contractors Cadent, who are undertaking the complex gas diversion works.
'Despite these relationships, it is disappointing to learn of the council’s decision to issue breach of condition notices through the media. As we are yet to receive either notice from West Suffolk Council, we are unable to provide any further comment on the detail.'
The council said that an additional Breach of Condition Notice will be issued over Persimmon’s failure to deliver a play area and public open space on time.
The play area and open space still requires remedial soft landscaping to bring it up to standard so it can open for the residents who now occupy that phase of the site.
There is no right of appeal against a breach of condition notice and failure to comply with a notice can result in court proceeding against the developer and an unlimited fine for each offence.
