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Dover to see first new eco town ?

Posted: 29/10/2007

The former Connaught Barracks in Dover has been named as the first in line of eight major brownfield sites to be redeveloped for new housing. The landmark site has been acquired by national regeneration agency English Partnerships to deliver around 500 much-needed homes in the town.

Acquisition and development of Connaught Barracks – most recently the home of the Parachute Regiment – is expected to inform decisions on similar publicly owned sites in meeting Government targets for 3 million new homes across England by 2020. At least 60% of the new homes will be built on brownfield and surplus public sector land such as Connaught.

David Edwards, English Partnerships’ Director for Southern England, said, “This is an historic day for an historic site. Our acquisition of Connaught Barracks presents a golden opportunity to develop a sustainable community and demonstrate to the rest of the country just how much can be achieved with surplus public sector land.

“Our approach at Connaught is evidence of the expertise English Partnerships will bring to the Homes and Communities Agency. This is the first step along a road leading to 3 million new homes across England by 2020.”

Located to the north of Dover town centre and adjacent to Dover Castle, Connaught Barracks covers an area of 56 hectares, of which 12.5 ha is suitable for the development of new homes. The remaining land includes large areas of open space and an English Heritage Scheduled Ancient Monument consisting of Fort Burgoyne and the Eastern and Western Caponiers.

The barracks site was declared surplus to requirements by the Ministry of Defence and put on the Register of Surplus Sector Land in November 2006.

Specific plans for the site will be drawn up following an extensive public consultation programme, alongside English Partnerships’ insistence that all new homes meet the highest design and environmental standards and that the development as a whole will meet the Government’s ambitions set out in the Code for Sustainable Homes.

The history of Connaught Barracks dates back to 1861, when the first defences at Fort Burgoyne were built. Fort Burgoyne, originally known as Castle Hill Fort, was built on high ground to the north of Dover Castle between 1861 and 1868 to protect the castle from attack by artillery. The fort is of polygonal design and is surrounded by a 35 foot wide ditch and flanked by two redoubts, the Eastern and Western Caponiers, which are connected to the fort by ditches.

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