PROTESTS are growing over plans to build more than 1,000 homes on a greenfield site.
Salford council has earmarked 50 acres at Burgess Farm in Walkden for a development of mainly top of the market houses.
But at a public meeting local residents turned out in force to object to the scheme.
About 120 people crammed into a meeting of the Walkden and Little Hulton Community Committee to hear council officers present the proposal.
The council says it would be the only greenfield site that would need to be released.
A report says the bulk of the houses will be of a 'very high quality design and construction to address the shortage of aspirational housing in Greater Manchester'.
The lion's share of 2,650 homes proposed for Walkden and Little Hulton would be built there.
The development is so vast a new 210-place primary school would be built on the site too.
The plan is included in the draft Core Strategy report, which outlines the council's vision up to 2027.
It says there is a 'strong argument' for limited release of greenfield land and says Burgess Farm would be the most suitable option as other locations are in green belt or have poorer access to services.
The site is off Hilton Lane and close to St George's RC High School which has just won a last minute reprieve from closure after a three-year campaign.
Six ponds on the site are inhabited by the Great Crested newt and will have to be preserved.
By 2027 the council aims to build 33,750 new dwellings.
But Tory Walkden South ward councillor, Iain Lindley, said: “Salford is required to build this many homes over the next 20 years due to a government diktat. A Conservative government would abolish the government’s central housing target and return these planning powers to local communities.
“The Burgess Farm site is not suitable for a huge housing development and local residents are rightly angry at the proposals.
“The Labour government has imposed a ridiculous house-building target on Salford which will result in unacceptable development on greenfield land and unwanted apartments elsewhere in Salford.
“The council should be standing up to the government not doing their dirty work for them.
“In my five years as a councillor I have not seen so many people come to the community committee. I would urge all local residents to make sure their views are sent in during the consultation process.”
Residents believe a development on the scale planned would cause traffic chaos in the district, which is near the East Lancashire Road - the city's busiest dual carriageway.
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“The council should be standing up to the government not doing their dirty work for them"
Salford Labour council are Labour Boot lickers, they jump to do whatever central government tells them to do.
the tories stopped council house building, let the stock decline with the "right to buy scheme" the money raised from sales could not be used for housing, so we have a massive housing shortage built up over 25 years, which needs addressing, too many Banks lent in the Buy to Let category meaning too many wrong type of housing being built. so the City has a massive shortage of decent housing stock, but the population is growing and the Tories are doing teh typical don't build in my back yard, and oppose new build of decent housing and from The Salford Reporter Karen Greedio supports all the schemes that bring new jobs to Salford and decent houses, why tonight I saw a Fox in Worsley if Greedio's friends get in I won't be seeing them any more either.
I hope this farm is never built upon. As a child my bedroom window looked out onto the fields. Looking at the picture above brings me back to those days, this land is sacred, leave it alone!
OMSY ,
4/12/2009 at 15:27
The window in the house that you looked through was standing on, what used to be fields; it goes for all of our houses.
It is not only the Conservative Councillors of Walkden and Worsley who are backing local residents but also Barbara Keeley, Labour Member of Parliament for Worsley. Residents in Walkden South have recently received a letter from Ms.Keeley through their doors in which she is publicising her opposition to the proposed development of Burgess Farm.
Local residents are opposing the proposals on the following grounds:-
1. The loss of the last remaining major green space in Walkden South. This land is a 'green lung' for local residents. The M28 region has some of the poorest air quality in the area due to its close proximity to some of the worst congested Motorways and major roads in the North West (Environment Agency).
2. The loss of another inner city working farm. Burgess Farm still contributes to the rapidly diminishing food chain in this country. The farm currently covers 170 acres. With the loss of these 50 acres on which the farm buildings are situated a further 120 acres could become 'vacant' and the area would be open for further development in the future.
3. Increased traffic congestion in one of the most congested parts of the North West with some of the poorest public transport links (Highways Agency).
4. Salford City Council state that Burgess Farm is the only Greenfield site in the Draft Core Strategy that NEEDS to be developed for family housing. The NEED is disputed on the grounds that the 600 homes equate to only 6% of the suggested requirement for the whole of the Salford Borough.
5. Salford City Council have suggested that 9,500 family houses will be required in the Salford Borough and that 50% of these (4,750) will be NEEDED in the Salford West region. It is proposed that 2,650 of these will be in the Little Hulton and Walkden area alone. That is 56% of the Salford West figure! This is totally unrealistic when you consider the above comments regarding congestion, air quality and public transport links in this area.
It should also be noted that of the responses to the Council on the Issues and Options report, which preceded the Draft Core Strategy, over 42% were explicit in their opposition to the development of Greenbelt or Greenfield land. Also, coincidentally, nearly 40% of all responses were from the M28 region in which Burgess Farm is situated.
It appears that the council's track record is being maintained in as much as they still do not appear to be listening to residents views. This will not stop us from opposing these proposals and we urge everybody who is affected by the congestion in this area, who wants to protect the environment and who values their current quality of life to do the same.
If you would like to join this campaign please e-mail: wendy.howarth@homecall.co.uk or telephone: 0161 790 6471.
Eddie and Wendy Howarth
to the point, bury 4/12/2009 at 17:01
So, to the point, what is your point? If you're looking for a good reason to build on Burgess Farm then you'll need a better argument than that and I realise that my sentimental argument wouldn't stand up too well on its own either. If the planners thought like you then we wouldn't have any national parks or areas of outstanding natural beauty left in the country, not a blade of grass.
I wish Wendy Howarth all the best with her campaign.
OMSY: "If the planners thought like you then we wouldn't have any national parks or areas of outstanding natural beauty left in the country, not a blade of grass."
The flip side is that, if planners thought like you, we'd have no houses, offices or shops, just endless fields and forests in which to camp and forage.