Revised plans have been put forward to build 29 new flats in the heart of Highbridge town centre as the deadline for a major regeneration bid approaches.

New Shore Developments Ltd., based in Poole, secured planning permission from Sedgemoor District Council’s development committee in July 2018 to redevelop the vacant brownfield site at 1 Market Street.

After this permission lapsed in February, the developer has now put forward amended proposals for the same number of homes.

The site lies on the roundabout connecting the B3139 Market Street to the A38 West Hunstpill Road – a short distance from the Bank Street car park, which has been identified by the council as a possible focus for a bid to the government’s levelling up fund.

The land was previously home to several Victorian homes and shops but has been vacant for several years.

Like the original scheme, the new plans will deliver a mixture of one- and two-bedroom flats, with a total of 31 subterranean car parking spaces and 32 cycling spaces.

A spokesman for Property Link, representing the developer, said: “There is now an unmet demand for flats due to the Hinkley Point C effect displacing local residents.

“The site is in a central location, being within walking distance from shops, the railway station, bus stops, with cycling distance from industrial sites, and within motoring distance from road links with two junctions of M5 (junction 22 and 23).”

Highbridge has seen significant housing growth in recent years, including the Brue Farm development on the A38 Huntspill Road (comprising 167 homes and a new primary school), 110 homes being constructed south of Lakeside, and a development of 46 homes on the B3139 Walrow (near the town’s railway station).

Plans are currently being considered for 248 homes on Isleport Lane near the M5, along with two commercial developments at the town’s northern edge, on the A38 Bristol Road and Pillmore Land respectively.

Highbridge has been identified as one of three settlements within the Wells constituency which could share £20M in the event of a successful levelling up fund bid – the others being Cheddar and Shepton Mallet.

The council has identified several projects which could improve the town centre with this funding – including improvements to Market Street, a new transport hub at the railway station, better flood defences on the River Brue and better cycle links with Burnham-on-Sea.

To have your say on the Highbridge regeneration proposals, visit  www.highbridgeregeneration.co.uk/staging/index.php before Friday (June 24).

The council is expected to decide on the revised proposals by the end of the summer – shortly after a bid is submitted for up to £20M of government funding to help revamp the town centre.