MP warns planners to preserve green spaces from development

Planners have been warned that they should not put North Yorkshire’s historic coastal landscapes at risk from development amid intense pressure to provide new and affordable housing.

Scarborough and Whitby Tory MP Robert Goodwill said preserving green spaces in the region’s urban areas was a priority and urged caution when considering any future development.

Mr Goodwill’s warning comes after campaigners in Scarborough have vowed to step up the fight against council plans to sell off one of the few remaining open spaces in the town.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Part of Moor Lane playing field, in Newby, has been earmarked for the development of 48 houses by Scarborough Borough Council, with 40 per cent of the scheme allocated for affordable housing.

As many as 14,000 people are on council waiting lists for affordable housing across York, Richmondshire, Hambleton, Ryedale, Craven, Scarborough and Selby.

And applications for affordable homes have risen dramatically as house-hunters have been unable to secure mortgages during the credit crisis.

Mr Goodwill said that while he recognised the “tremendous demand” for new and affordable housing in the area, it was the council’s job to identify which sites would be the most appropriate. “It’s important to have green spaces in towns that people have access to and the importance of this should weigh heavily on councillors when they consider any changes.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“Obviously the places where development should take place is on brown field sites as a priority,” he said. “The council will need to take into account local people’s views and try and come up with priorities for development that meet the demand for housing and recognise people’s concern.”

Residents, who have formed an action group to fight the plans, said the scheme would strip them of a valuable space which is used by the whole town.

Paul Bassett, member of Save Moor Lane Field Action Group, said: “The residents are very upset at this idea. We think it’s a valuable piece of land in Scarborough. There aren’t really many green spaces left in town and from the community’s point of view it’s very important. Children play on there and it’s very popular in winter when it’s snowing as people come from all over to sledge on the field. It’s also very popular for dog walkers.”

Councillors voted six to three in favour of selling the land in principal at a meeting held on July 19, despite nine letters of objection and a petition signed by 151 residents objecting to the sale.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Negotiations over the sale of the 2.7 acre field are under way with the highest bidder, following interest from two developers.

Mr Bassett, whose house backs onto the field, said: “I do appreciate that the council has these requirements to raise funds. While we are conscious of the need to do that, we feel it’s a matter of acquiring the right sites to do these developments and we don’t feel this is a suitable area to build such a housing development.”

The action group has called a public meeting on Friday in a bid to pressurise the council and force the authority into making a u-turn on the decision.

Mr Bassett said: “It’s about raising the profile of the proposed development and making sure as many people as possible are aware of what’s going on. We need to stop our precious space from being taken.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

A spokesman from Scarborough Borough Council said the land would provide much needed affordable housing for the area, as well as capital funds to help pay for other projects within the borough.

“The future developer will need to take into account the detailed planning permissions for this area which include improvements to the drainage system. Highways engineers have considered access issues and have confirmed that they are appropriate for the scale of the development that could be carried out on the site,” said the spokesman.