DEVELOPER McCarthy & Stone says plans to build retirement flats at the site of the Clarke and Rodway Garage in Marlborough will help to ease traffic problems around Granham Hill.

The application for 28 one and two bed apartments has now been submitted to Wiltshire Council following a public consultation in May.

Just 28 people turned up to the exhibition at St John’s School, with more than 1,000 households being invited.

Shane Paull, regional managing director of McCarthy & Stone, said: “Listening to local people’s feedback we soon realised that the existing access and safety on the roads surrounding Granham Hill was a particular concern.

“We have taken this on board and are proposing measures that we believe will help to improve the current situation.”

The plans propose to widen the entrance to Granham Close so that two cars can pass, reinstate the pavement and introduce a marked pedestrian crossing.

The proposed garage site was the subject of a planning application for a retirement accommodation development of 36 apartments by Pegasus Homes in 2008.

The application was refused on the basis of insufficient information, a need for affordable housing and overlooking neighbouring properties.

Mr Paull said: “Our proposals for Marlborough help meet a growing, local housing need, whilst offering benefits for the wider community.

“For example, on average each development represents an investment of around £5 million into the local economy and on moving, residents in later life tend to release family housing, which helps to stimulate the housing chain and enable young families and first time buyers to have a better opportunity within the housing market.”

McCarthy & Stone anticipate that around 60 per cent of the residents moving to one of their developments will come from within a five to 10-mile radius of the proposed site.