Free Online at www.coastalviewandmoornews.co.uk The Community Newspaper for the Towns and Villages of East Cleveland, Redcar & North York Moors, telling the real news and views of the people of our region Issue 77 March - April 2017
•• This month 26,300 copies ••
End of long battle for Boosbeck industrial activities in the heart of a village, but were caught by land use law which stipulated that former uses can outlive an ownership and start again without the need for a new planning application. “The controversy was heightened when outside, racist and neo-Nazi elements sought to involve themselves on the basis that the plant was processing Halal meats - an intervention the village didn’t need and didn’t want.
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t’s the end of a long battle, which goes back all the way to 2013 when the controversial abattoir re-opened in Boosbeck, much to the surprise of many of the residents and despite assurances from several quarters that it would never again be re-opened. And after many demonstrations and failed legal challenges to get it closed, the recent decision by Redcar and Cleveland’s Regulatory Committee to unanimously approve plans to build housing on the site were finally given the go-ahead. A petition with 143 signatories who were against the plans was submitted showing concern about the number of houses to be built, (69 in total) and the movement of the children’s play area which would result in a loss of some open space in the village. There was however support from villagers who said they would be very pleased to see the abattoir demolished but asked the developers to take into consideration the views from existing properties. The residents were assured that if permission was given the developers would demolish the abattoir building by the summer On the re-opening, in 2013 BASH, Boosbeck
Against SlaughterHouse, was formed and the organisation fought tirelessly to end the long suffering of the villagers who on a daily basis complained about the smells and noise the abattoir was creating. One of the leading campaigners, Marlene Brown told Coastal View: “We are delighted, this is the end of the fight against what has been a blight on our village. “I can’t really say much more than thank you to all the people who have supported the fight and understood what villagers had to put up with. “I would like to think any revenue received by the Council in the sale of the land would be reinvested in the village. It would be small compensation.” Local MP for Middlesbrough South and East Cleveland, Tom Blenkinsop said, “This has been a matter which has been high on the local agenda for some years. “The residents who had thought the abattoir had been closed for good when the former Norman family ceased trading, were rightly annoyed when it re-opened under new ownership in 2013. They were concerned about fumes, smell and
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“However, after a lot of patient negotiation between the local council and the plant operators a deal was finally brokered. The deal is a success for local people as it will mean the closure of the plant for good and the purchase of the land by a housing developer. “Now that planning permission has been granted, the sooner the diggers are on the site, the better. I look forward to seeing the first new households moving into the village.”