Strict planning controls have been placed on land near Stisted following village concerns it could be sold to developers wanting to build on it.
Braintree Council has imposed strict planning rules on 47 acres of land near Brookes Wood in Stisted, which is being sold on the internet by Gladwish Land Sales.
The company, based in West Sussex, has decided to sell the land in 236 plots.
The land is classified agricultural which normally means only fencing and temporary buildings can be constructed without planning permission.
But Braintree Council has responded to local concerns by serving stricter planning conditions known as article four directions banning even these developments without planning permission.
A spokesman for Braintree Council said: "The move should help allay concerns expressed by local people and seek to prevent development which would spoil the local environment."
More than 70 of the plots have already been sold.
Public concern was such that more than 200 people packed into the village hall in Stisted to express their concerns at a public meeting, which was also attended by Braintree MP Alan Hurst and district councillor for Coggeshall, Nigel Edey.
John Gibson, a chartered surveyor of Stisted who spoke at the meeting, said: "I am very impressed with the speed in which Braintree Council acted in arranging an article four direction, they really have been very good indeed."
Published Wednesday, March 26, 2003
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