Part of Stockport's countryside will be cleared to make way for new housing after plans were given the go ahead. One councillor called it 'a crime' but said their hands were tied.
At a Stockport council planning meeting on September 24, councillors were asked to consider plans to build 160 new homes on green belt land off Jackson's Lane in Hazel Grove. The plans had been recommended for refusal unanimously at a Stepping Hill area committee meeting earlier this month.
Plans and objections
According to a council report, the application covers 11 hectares of fields currently used for farming and 50% of the homes would be classed as affordable. The plans faced objections from 127 people alongside the Friends of Ladybrook Valley, Hazel Grove High School, the South Manchester Badger Group, and an online petition signed by 2,372 people.
Those opposed argued the plan 'will result in encroachment into the countryside' and 'the rural character of the area would be destroyed' by 'unnecessary urban sprawl'. However councillors ultimately ended up approving the plans.
Councillors' views
Coun Liz Crix said she had been told 'it is a crime to develop on this land' but said 'it's a crime that's legalised by the planning framework and I understand we're very heavily bound'. She said she hoped the harms of the development would be mitigated and worried about wildlife being disturbed.
Coun Asa Caton said: "We want to protect ecology, we want to protect trees but the stark reality that we find ourselves in is that we're in the middle of a housing crisis, not just in Stockport nationally." He said the council could not deliver all the homes needed on brownfield land and moved to approve the plans.
Before the vote, Coun Steve Gribbon said: "This is a challenging time. There's affordable houses here to be built. There's government regulations and planning and numbers that have to be adhered to.
"This is a policy-based decision making model, nothing else. We can't get emotional about it however much we might like or dislike something. That's just the way the government scheme has been put to us. We have no say in this matter like that."
Developer's case
At a previous area committee meeting, Andy McClaren, from Lichfields representing developer Taylor Wimpey, said the land was considered grey belt and highlighted a 'significant under-delivery' of new housing in the borough. He said this had led to an affordability crisis. He added the scheme would provide environmental benefits and create new habitats across the site.
