Controversial plans for 630 homes to be built have been withdrawn, to the relief of many living nearby.
The proposals, which were first submitted in 2019, would have seen the properties established alongside a new primary school and community centre on agricultural land near the A11 in Wymondham.
It would have spanned almost 40 hectares in Norwich Common and would have been surrounded by existing houses and farmland.
But Gladman Developments has now informed South Norfolk Council that it no longer wishes to proceed with the project.
A letter sent to the authority on June 30 revealed the decision had been reached following the expiration of the already-extended determination period.
Cllr Suzanne Nuri-Nixon, chairwoman of Wymondham Town Council, welcomed the news.
"South Norfolk planners have admitted in the past that we have had our fair share of housing development," she said.
"So I'm not sure why this application was being put forward in the first place.
"It would have also encroached upon the so-called strategic gap which separates us from Hethersett and has been used before to refuse applications.
"We’ve had rapid housing growth in Wymondham over the past few years, therefore another large-scale development wouldn’t necessarily be welcome - especially without the kind of infrastructure needed to sustain it."
The developers had requested multiple time extensions to submit reserved matters - including how it would address further traffic issues on the A11 - but these were never received.
A number of locals living in Wymondham had written to South Norfolk Council to raise their concerns.
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"While I fully accept that houses are necessary, surely there must be a limit," said one homeowner.
"What about the services that people require?
"If you were to live in Wymondham and require a visit to either a doctor or dentist, you will be extremely hard-pressed to get an appointment.
"We have to travel to Dereham to see a dentist, and we are both in our 70s."
In the 10 years from 2001 to 2011, Wymondham’s population grew by 15pc from 12,539 to 14,405 - and by 2020 the numbers living there were estimated at almost 17,000.
Hundreds more homes are on the way.
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"The town cannot be allowed to grow anymore," said another Wymondham homeowner.
"It will have an impact on the open country and we do not want to become a suburb of Norwich.
"The schools are full, as are the doctor's surgery and dentist."
Wymondham is just one area on the outskirts of Norwich to see such a rapid expansion - with folk living in villages such as Cringleford, Hethersett and Rackheath also raising concerns about a lack of suitable infrastructure.
In 2021, controversial plans for 200 extra homes in Hethersett were approved.
Persimmon Homes and Taylor Wimpey were also given outline permission in 2013 to build 1,196 homes on the north side of the village.
This scheme has come under fire as community leaders and locals argue Hethersett did not have suitable infrastructure to cope.
And it is a similar picture in Cringleford which is bracing itself for over 1,300 homes and a new 420-place primary school.
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"The town is bursting at the seams," said one Wymondham local.
"There is no infrastructure to accommodate all these houses.
"The primary schools are full and the wait time to see a GP can be two to three weeks."
Wymondham and the GNLP
Wymondham falls under the Greater Norwich Local Plan (GNLP).
The GNLP is a blueprint for where 50,000 new homes could be built in Norwich, South Norfolk and Broadland by 2038.
Wymondham was allocated a total of 150 additional homes across two sites by 2038.
However, much of the major housing commitment and employment expansion has been set out in the town's own Area Action Plan which, when joined to the GNLP, features an allocation of around 2,600 homes.
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