The Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead council has given the green light for a major town centre redevlopment project, contrary to a report by planning officers recommending the council refuse the development.

The report raised a number of concerns about the impact of the development on the town, which it labelled as both ‘substantial’ and ‘detrimental’ and said it could lead to a ‘visually overbearing wall of development’.

Those criticisms were discussed at a meeting of the Maidenhead Development Management Panel on Wednesday, November 21, before they were ignored and the application was given the go ahead.

The company in charge of the development, HUB, released a statement following the approval, expressing their delight following ‘false starts’ and ‘delays’.

Steve Sanham, managing director of HUB, said: “This is a fantastic decision for Maidenhead. The Landing site has been subject to far too many false starts and delays.

“We are confident our scheme will bring a buzz back to the town centre and revitalise it in the way the people of Maidenhead have told us they want. We now look forward to getting on and delivering it.”

Following the meeting, leader of the council Simon Dudley congratulated the panel on their decision, which he had spoken in favour of. He said: “Well done to members of the Maidenhead Development Management Panel for approving The Landing development. Thank you to everyone for backing our town regeneration.”

Not everyone on the panel was pleased with the decision, however. Councillor Claire Stretton, who raised a number of concerns about the project, labeled it the ‘slums of the future’ and suggested that it should not be permitted by the panel.

Councillor Derek Sharp also spoke in favour of refusing the application.

It was eventually given the green light, following a vote by the panel.