A NEW plan to allow 350 houses to built in Wallingford by 2016 is being prepared by the district council.

The stop-gap measure, which would replace a previous target of 750 homes by 2026, is set to be unveiled by South Oxfordshire District Council in an attempt to reclaim the initiative from developers preparing to submit planning applications for hundreds of houses in the coming weeks.

But the settlement would leave open how many houses will be built in the town after 2016.

On Tuesday, district council officers outlined the idea as one of three options put to representatives from Wallingford Town Council and parish councillors from Cholsey, Brightwell-cum-Sotwell and Crowmarsh.

The only alternatives were to consider the upcoming planning applications for hundreds of homes in Winterbrook set to be lodged by Wates and Berkeley Homes in the coming weeks without any new planning policy on housing numbers in place, or to ratify the 750-home target that was scrapped by the district council in June.

The town council wants just 350 homes to be built in the town over the next 16 years.

Earlier this year, 1,000 people signed a town council petition backing the limit.

Mayor of Wallingford Bernard Stone said it would be “totally unacceptable” if no limits were imposed on housing after 2016.

He said: “It would still put us in the situation after 2016 that developers would be fighting over how much development there would be, with conflict between the different parts of town.”

He added: “I am not closed minded, but in some respects we are between a rock and hard place.”

He said if housing numbers were only confirmed for the next six years, he would seek guarantees about the district council’s longer-term vision for Wallingford’s future growth .

Imran Lokhon, district councillor for Wallingford North, said a new draft core strategy, outlining where in the district homes could be built, could be voted on by the council’s cabinet in October or November.

That would mean a new framework would be in place before the two Winterbrook planning applications were decided.

Mr Lokhon said: “We need to have something in place.

“In an ideal world, we would build 350 homes until 2026 to give developers a clear goal and so they know what is to be developed in the town.

“It is still not clear enough beyond 2016.

“But at least with figures for 2016 we know we are moving forwards and it stops us being led by developers.”

He added: “We may still end up with 750 by 2026, which I do not agree with, but I do not think the figures will go up unless the Government brings in new options.”