NO decision has been made on plans to build 222 homes in a former quarry in Plymouth - which were expected to be approved today.

Plymouth City Council's planning commitee met to discuss the £43million plan to build a new community in Hooe Quarry - and was expected to approve the scheme.

Instead, a decision on the scheme has been postponed.

The decision was already postponed on an earlier occasion so that councillors could visit the site.

Barratt Homes wants to build a waterside community on former Ministry of Defence land in Hooe.

​Members of Plymouth City Council planning committee had been recommended to approve the full planning application by council officers.

There has been opposition to the scheme from residents who fear traffic chaos, the loss of wildlife and overcrowding of local facilities.

There have also been concerns over a lack of affordable housing.

The Exeter-based developer acquired an interest in the plot, off Barton Road, last year.

It originally proposed 300 new homes – but dropped the figure to 222 in the face of local pressure.

The six-year project would include 22 apartments, four one-bedroom homes, 47 two-bedroom homes, 120 three-bedroom homes and 31 four-bedroom properties, including affordable housing.

Barratts would provide parking, more than two acres of open space and improved access to the site.

Since the consultation the company has proposed a footpath to improve pedestrian safety along Barton Road and proposed a mini-roundabout at the junction of Barton Road and Hooe Road to calm traffic.

Local campaigners say the development would add to traffic and create a bottleneck on the only road in and out of the Hooe, Turnchapel and Mount Batten peninsula.

The Turnchapel and Mount Batten Residents Association is worried that there is little space at local schools, dentists and doctors' surgeries, and fear that the local sewerage system would be overwhelmed.

Residents fear land contamination, with Barratts having to remove three disused MoD fuel storage silos on the land, which has lain dormant for decades.