15 - February - 2017
INSIDE THIS WEEK’S ISSUE... NEWS
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Students meet the former Business Secretary
LIFEextra
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Young medics provide life-saving service
SPORT
PAGE 12
Huge win for LJMU women’s rugby team
© David Purcell
© Connor Bennett
CALDERSTONES CONTROVERSY ANGER: Protesters gather outside Liverpool Town Hall By CONNOR BENNETT City planners have dealt a blow to local charity group the friends of Harthill and Calderstones Park after they approved the plans for Redrow homes to be built on the parkland site. Council planning officers recommended that the plan should be approved and it was, by a vote of four to one, despite weeks of protest from the group and residents. Housing developer Redrow have been looking to build around 50 homes next to Calderstones Park but their plans had been met with resistance at every turn from residents. The land has been earmarked for the Redrow homes following claims that it is not open to the public so is therefore not parkland.
Planning blow for park protesters
The group held two protests yesterday, one on Harthill Road and one at Liverpool Town Hall ahead of the decision. Around 200 people protested at Harthill while a further 30 joined the demonstration in town. The group are also attempting to get Village Green status granted for parts of the land in a bid to stop any building. Caroline Williams, a member of the friends of Harthill and Calderstones Park, told Liverpool Life: “There is a village application going in to say people have walked that land, have used it for recreational purposes for over 20 years and witness statements
have all been signed and they’ve all been submitted.” The group have based their protest on Harthill being a part of the park and say they found deeds from a Freedom of Information request that backs their claim up. Williams commented: “There were two Freedom of Information requests and they basically said that park has leases and licenses on it for different things.” As part of the Harthill scheme, charities and community groups in the area – specifically Beechley Riding Stables, CalderKids Adventure Playground and the 75-year-old Calderstones
children’s railway - are being offered new facilities elsewhere and while they have seemingly accepted the plans, the group still looked to dispute them. Williams added: “Obviously the riding stable is a recreational facility and Calder Kids is an adventure playground for the disabled and also the miniature railway, they are all things that are good for use. They’re all things that fit in to the park use whereas a housing estate doesn’t fit in with park use.” The group have also gained the support of Calderstones School, whose buildings sit adjacent to the land. They
have also said it will strongly object to the plans as they are concerned about the potential traffic increases and noise pollution that any development would have on the school and its pupils. Local Gogglebox TV stars Leon and June backed the campaign on Twitter on Monday evening, sending their support to the local residents and urging Liverpool Mayor Joe Anderson to help stop the plans being approved. Seeing as the area is a park and green space, the group have been concerned about the precedent this decision sets for the future and what could happen to other green
spaces across the city. In January, Liverpool was ranked bottom of the UK’s biggest cities with available green spaces at just under 17 percent. Mapping company ERSI UK analysed satellite pictures from last spring and found that other cities had close to a third more green space. The planning decision could now open up the debate on sites like Allerton Priory, where Redrow had planned to build 160 homes but had plans rejected. The Flintshire-based housing company is currently appealing that decision and this approval could give them the chance to win that appeal.