THE next stage in the redevelopment of a former Norfolk RAF base into an eco-friendly village has stalled.Applications to build 58 homes and 20 loft-style holiday apartments at West Raynham were deferred by North Norfolk District Council's planning committee last Thursday.

THE next stage in the redevelopment of a former Norfolk RAF base into an eco-friendly village has stalled.

Applications to build 58 homes and 20 loft-style holiday apartments at West Raynham were deferred by North Norfolk District Council's planning committee last Thursday.

Planners recommended councillors defer the application for 48 houses and 10 flats so that highways experts could give advice on the traffic impact of building more houses.

The application to convert former aircraft hangers into loft style apartments with space for planes beneath them was also deferred so that the safety implications of the proposal could be investigated further.

But a third application to convert a former sales centre and barrack block into temporary living accommodation for construction workers was approved.

During a brief discussion on the plans councillors indicated they were broadly in favour of both schemes and said they were pleased with how the site's owner, Roger Gawn, was redeveloping the area.

They said they were happy to see that 23 of the 58 homes would be affordable and indicated that they might even be willing to permit a higher density of homes should this be needed to justify improvements to the local road infrastructure.

The 162-acre airbase stood empty for more than a decade before Mr Gawn bought it last year.

The base's former airmen's quarters have already been converted into homes and the first owners are due to move in within the next few weeks.