Further steps have been taken, paving the way for a new housing development in Crosby.

Last year planning approval was given in principle, following an appeal, to building 28 houses along with a shop and office in fields opposite Eyreton Terrace, adjacent to the Millennium Hall and cricket ground in the village.

Now the detailed proposal has been submitted by planners, showing precisely what the new estate could look like.

The proposal is to build on fields west of the bowling club with a lane leading to the new houses from the main road. In addition to the new houses there is to be a shop with an office space on the first floor. Planning proposals are also for a new bus layby on the west-bound side of the road and a so-called ’puffin’ crossing nearby, allowing residents in the existing main part of the village to cross the road more easily to get to the new shop.

(The puffin crossing is similar to a pelican crossing but it detects pedestrians waiting to cross or in the process of crossing.)

The development is to include 33 car parking spaces.

A public footpath will link the new estate with the foremer railway line to its immediate south and this provides a walking and cycle route to Douglas around five miles away. There will also be a foot and cycle path from Peel Road, running parallel with the stream, leading down to the old railway line.

Trees bordering Peel Road are to be removed but they will be replaced slightly further away from the road, planners say. This is to allow extra space for the pavement and new bus layby and also for the entrance of the lane running into the estate.

All other existing features of the landscape are to be retained, the plans say, and any trees removed will be replaced.

The site will include seven affordable houses. All the properties are to be two-storey, three or four bedroomed, and are either terraced or detached. Planners say the area was originally zoned for residential development in 1982 and the old railway line will make a safe footpath away from traffic, for children wanting to reach Marown School nearby. Green space is provided in the site providing for football, bowling, a children’s play area as well as a skate park and BMX track.

Planners say the new estate will have minimal impact on the existing character of Crosby village. The new houses are to be a similar mix of detached and terraced, built to a similar style and the addition of the bus layby, shop and space for cars to turn and manoeuvre will be an asset.

A floodrisk assessment carried out in January this year said there was no risk of the new properties being flooded nor would the new development pose any added threat for existing housing in the area. Water run off was assessed to be adequate into the nearby river.

Surveys by the Manx Bat Group suggested any development would not have an adverse effect on the bat population, with none of the species detected affected by street lighting and none doing more than feeding in the area.