A garden centre and plant nursery in a village could be demolished to make way for a residential development, according to new plans.

Chigwell Nursery in High Road was allocated in Epping Forest District Council’s emerging local plan for a development of 65 houses.

Now a planning application by M Scott Properties Ltd has been submitted to the council to meet the site allocation and provide a mix of bungalows and one to four bedroom homes.

According to the planning statement, the site counts as previously developed land but counts as being in the green belt because it lies outside the current settlement boundary in the adopted local plan.

However, it is proposed to be removed from the green belt in the council’s emerging local plan, which is currently in its final stages of examination.

A design and access statement says the Roding Valley site is in the green belt but outside the Chigwell Conservation Area.

A section reads: “The vision for the completed development is to provide a high quality residential community that compliments the character of the edge of village setting. 

“The intention is to provide an attractive contemporary scheme that offers a variety of dwellings to cater for a range of lifestyles.”

According to the planning statement, the site counts as previously developed land despite being in the green belt within the emerging local plan, which is currently in its final stages.

Part of the site, east of the area proposed to be redeveloped, will remain standing and is not part of the application.

Each house will have one parking space and electric charging points will be made available, according to the design and access statement. 

The applicant is also proposing to upgrade the existing vehicle access point to the site onto High Road.

Chigwell tube station is within easy reach of the site, with Roding Valley and Grange Hill tube stations slightly further away.

There are also bus stops served by routes 677 and 804, which both operate as a school service and connect to key destinations nearby.

The planning application can be found on the council's planning portal via reference EPF/0503/22