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Former Kent barracks in Ministry of Defence £500m sell-off

The Ministry of Defence (MOD) is to press ahead with the sale of a former army barracks in Kent as part of a major UK-wide disposal.

Lodge Hill, located in Chattenden, is included on a list of MOD sites which the government is looking to sell-off in the hopes of raising £500m.

Previous plans for the site were met with opposition by environmental campaigners due to large parts of the land having been deemed Sites of Special Scientific Interest by Natural England. In light of the opposition, property management firm Land Securities eventually canned controversial plans to build 5,000 homes on the site.

Medway Council leader Cllr Alan Jarrett told Kent Online: “We see this as a positive move to providing a new community in Medway.

“This will mean new homes and jobs for local people, as the development plans include 5,000 homes, three primary schools, a secondary school, medical facilities and leisure and retail space on the Hoo Peninsula, providing up to 5,000 jobs.

“The council approved planning permission for the site which is now subject to a public inquiry.”

The sell-off is part of MOD plans to reduce its built estate, which currently covers 452,000 hectares of UK land, by 30% over the next ten years.

Defence Minister, Mark Lancaster, has high hopes for the plans as he explained: “By streamlining the Defence estate, we will ensure that it better meets the needs of the Armed Forces well into the future.

“Defence has the strongest incentive to become more efficient; with every pound we make by disposing of excess land reinvested into a defence budget that keeps Britain safe.

“We are also making an important contribution of 55,000 homes to the wider government housing targets. Every acre that we can free up will ensure that more people have the opportunity to own their own home.”

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