Opponents to the construction of a Muslim funeral building at Farnham Park Cemetery raised their concerns on the first day of a six-day planning inquiry.
The Ismaili Trust is appealing to the planning inspector after their application to build the structure next to St John’s Church, off Hale Road, was refused by Waverley Borough Council.
During the opening day of the inquiry, the committee heard from both legal representatives of the Ismaili Trust and local residents opposing the plans. Central to the discussion were concerns about the potential traffic impact and environmental effects of the proposed building.
Lord Charles Banner KC, representing the Ismaili Trust, argued that the increase in traffic to and from the site would be minimal.
He pointed out that council regulations stated that "developments could only be prevented or refused on highway grounds if there was an unacceptable risk to highway safety or if the cumulative impact on roads was severe."
"Thinking of it this way, before Christmas some people at the inquiry postulated that there would be very large events – the Elton John end-of-the-scale of funerals rather than the smaller scale ones," Lord Banner said.
"Occasionally there might be a more high-profile person in the Ismaili community with more people attending the funeral. But how reasonable is it to suggest that those funerals will happen week-in, week-out?"
The inquiry was told that only two funerals at the site had more than 100 attendees, making up just 2 percent of events. The proposed new building has a capacity for 181 people, but it is unlikely to ever exceed that number, the trust’s legal team said.
A typical funeral would have around 40 attendees, in rare instances, it could reach the building's full capacity of 181. In both cases, the impact on parking and local highways was deemed acceptable, they argued.
However, Cllr Catherine Powell, representing the Farnham North constituency on Surrey County Council, disagreed.
She argued that the development would worsen traffic conditions in the area, particularly given the government's push for more housing across the region, which is expected to result in an increase in car numbers. Additionally, she raised concerns that the forthcoming Farnham Infrastructure Plan would shift traffic from the town centre into the vicinity of the proposed cemetery.
The site is part of a designated Site of Alternative Natural Green Space (SANG) and has planning permission for a low-impact woodland burial site. The applicants believe their plans align with the intended use of the land, but opponents argue that the building doesn’t meet the "local community use" criteria, as the majority of its users would likely come from outside the area, particularly from London.
The appeal is being supported by a strong legal team, headed by Lord Banner, one of the country's leading planning lawyers. He has extensive experience in housing-related planning matters, including representing successful appellants in a recent case involving a housing development in the St Albans Green Belt. In comparison, Waverley Borough Council has a much smaller team.