Conservative leader's column: Stubley Meadows application "should never had seen the light of day"

John Taylor is the leader of the local Conservative party in Rochdale and a councillor for Wardle and West Littleborough.

This month he dedicates his column to discussing his thoughts on the controversial Stubley Meadows planning application.

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It has been a hectic month to say the least and my first thoughts on writing my column for June are to congratulate my colleague and our new mayor of the borough, Councillor Mike Holly, and his wife, Margaret, our new mayoress.

I am delighted for them both and I’m sure they will do a fabulous job of representing the borough as our first citizens. I know they take their new responsibilities seriously and both will endeavour to promote all that is good about the borough of Rochdale.

Both are motivated and committed to their new roles and I am particularly pleased for Margaret as we both grew up on the same street in Summit, Littleborough, many years ago.

The mayor making ceremony at Riverside was a spectacular event and it is always pleasing to share such a civic occasion with dignitaries and councillors from across the political spectrum.

I would like to thank our former mayor, Councillor Ali Ahmed, who was an excellent representative for us all, he did a great job during his term in office. Mike Holly certainly has a hard act to follow but as a chartered accountant, I’m sure we can count on him to do so.

I must also turn my attention to the recent planning committee meeting held on 25 May in the council offices at Riverside and, in particular, the application by Russell Homes to build additional homes at Stubley Meadows.
 

Read more: Fury as controversial housing plan gets green light despite protest and hundreds of objectionsPublished: 26 May 2023

This has undoubtedly been the most contentious application I have seen during the five years I have been an elected member including four of those years as a member of the planning committee.

I must place on record that I have no issue with Russell Homes and I recognise how as a commercial enterprise their purpose is to make money. I have found them to be one of the easier developers to deal with as an elected member and wish them every success in delivering developments for the borough where they are needed.

And therein lies the first community concern as those residents who live in the immediate environs to Stubley Meadows do not want the protected space adjacent to their homes destroyed; they do not want the council to sell land to a developer without the option of buying it themselves being afforded to them.

The wider community across Littleborough do not want additional strain on the creaking and already overloaded infrastructure and they do not want the inevitable pollution associated with yet more standing traffic along the A58.

The application should never have seen the light of day and when the developer approached the council asking to purchase the land, they should have been told no in exactly the same way as residents were told when they enquired about purchasing it.

The level of community anger and concern generated was noisy and very visible with almost 600 objections lodged on the planning portal and around 100 residents in attendance at the meeting itself.

 

 

I recognise the requirement for a justifiable planning reason to refuse the application and I addressed the panel at length providing numerous reasons to refuse the application and each one was, in my opinion, a legitimate planning reason to do so.

I also recognise and have said many times how we must have a strategic plan for housing development that meets the needs of our community and one that delivers economic growth too. That plan is Places for Everyone and although I do not agree with all aspects of it, I do accept the necessity for the strategic vision it delivers and the importance of sticking to such plans.

The benefits of agreeing a strategic plan for the area are without question and nobody argues against that point.

The primary strategic/ spatial plan is Places for Everyone and it is currently being assessed for soundness by government inspectors – I spent three days informing those inspectors of local views and although I do not agree with all aspects within the plan, we all agree that the principals of such a plan must be adopted.

Without a plan developments become piecemeal, ad-hoc and unstructured. The plan sets out areas for development and if approved will become a material consideration for any future planning committee.

However, the Stubley Meadows site isn’t in that plan and as it is “protected space” it doesn’t seem to meet the criteria needed for development either.

Despite this, the application was passed although the decision is now the subject of a community complaint.

In short, the council and the community together and in partnership must determine the level of future development across our borough. Otherwise, the myopic manipulation of facts and figures will always be stacked in favour of the developers.

It would appear in this instance, and for now at least, cash has spoken louder than community, pounds have taken precedence over people and balance sheets have been prioritised above biodiversity.