Bridgend Council’s Planning Committee has granted outline consent to a housing-led development at the former Revlon/Cosi/Cooper Standard factory at Ewenny Road in Maesteg (pdf).
The masterplan – published in November 2022 – proposes:
- 201 homes – which would be a mix of standard family houses, maisonettes and apartments.
- A park and ride for Maesteg Ewenny Road railway station.
- Business space and retail along Oakwood Drive.
- Open space alongside the River Llynfi.
At least two previous masterplans for the site have been approved and failed to be delivered, with the site remaining derelict for the best part of 15 years.
This time the project is backed by a provisional £3.5million in funding from the Cardiff City Region aimed at remediating brownfield sites to bring them back into use for housing.
Some of the statutory consultees had concerns about any future development of the site.
The Coal Authority are concerned about former mine workings in the area and expects a full risk assessment. Additionally, Network Rail objects to the development as it may increase the use of pedestrian level crossings in the area.
Cllr. Ross Penhale-Thomas (Ind, Maesteg West) raised concerns about the impact on the local road network and requested speed reduction measures and junction changes be included.
City Region funding terms being finalised
In response to a question from Cllr. Norah Clarke (Ind, Nottage), Corporate Director for Communities, Janine Nightingale, said talks are ongoing with the Cardiff City Region to finalise the terms of the £3.5million funding.
A date of 2026 was mentioned by which up to 100 homes should be delivered – but that’s still subject to confirmation.
From a local member perspective, Cllr. Martin Hughes (Lab, Maesteg East) spoke in favour. Maesteg would “benefit tremendously” from the development, which would provide much-needed housing and open space.
The outline application was approved unanimously.
Conditions include a contribution of £8,000 towards a parking and loading restriction order along Oakwood Drive, as well as a minimum of 15% of homes (30 homes) being affordable.
Work will also need to be undertaken to fix possible contamination issues and protect archaeologically significant parts of the site.
As this is an outline application, full/detailed planning application(s) will need to be submitted in the future.
