Neighbours furious as massive housing scheme wins approval

The controversial plans for almost 300 homes on Lindley Moor got the go-ahead after a three-hour, heated planning meeting involving Kirklees Council’s planning sub-committee.

It was approved by only one vote, with an 8-7 decision in favour of the Miller Homes application.

Protesters said they were worried about the proposal’s impact on the area’s schools and highways.

During the meeting, residents, ward councillors and some members of the committee insisted that the new proposal would prove problematic in terms of the development’s design, highways, education and air quality.

The plan for the homes to be built on land off Cowrakes Road and Weatherhill Road originally came before the committee last month – but was rejected.

But council officers voiced concern over a likely appeal and it was brought back to the committee.

Officers claimed it could leave the council facing a huge bill if it went to appeal and recommended approval.

Colne Valley Conservative MP Jason McCartney said that the committee should not consider the financial implications of rejecting the proposal but “should make the right vote”.

Councillor Peter McBride (Lab) spoke in favour of the application and all his Labour colleagues voted in favour of it.

He said the reverberations could cause Kirklees Council to be “scarred with being a maverick in dealing with planning applications”.

David Rollinson spoke on behalf of Miller Homes, the firm behind the application.

He said: “It’s a £50m investment, with the development of homes and jobs, offset with highways benefits.”

Afterwards Coun Cahal Burke (Lib Dem, Lindley) said he felt “absolutely gutted”.

He said: “I feel disappointed that a lot of views of the public were not taken on board.

“There has been a lot of manoeuvring to make sure that this happened.

“Supportive documents from the council read as if it should go ahead as officers recommended it for approval.

“There were a lot of issues regarding the threat of appeal and the potentially huge cost that would entail so it appeared that the easiest thing to do was go along with it and sadly that is what happened.

“This issue has been kicking around for between 10 and 15 years – the developers have gone away but kept coming back.

“Schools in Lindley are already over-subscribed and one head teacher said to me that the only way to provide local places for all the children who will need schooling with this development is to build a new school.”

Coun Christine Stansfield, (Lib Dem, Lindley), added: “It’s going to upset a lot of local people, the decision will cause great distress and shock.

“Although it has not been strictly moorland for more than 100 years it is an open green space and it is has been farmed for 100 to 150 years.

“It is hard to underestimate the upset that this will cause.

“It’s a place for dog walking and so on,” she added.

Protesters who have been opposing a major housing development in the Bradford area have won backing from councillors.

Loud cheering broke out in Bingley Arts Centre on Friday after councillors turned down a controversial planning application for up to 440 homes near Bingley by developers Redrow and Bellway.

Members of the Shipley area planning panel voted to reject the proposed development at Sty Lane, Micklethwaite, which has been on the cards for years.

Planning officers had recommended councillors approve the proposed development on green fields, but members of the panel decided to go against the recommendation.