‘Council blunder’ over beauty spot
From the archive, first published Monday 11th Sep 2006.
A BLUNDER by Bolton Council has left a battle to preserve a beauty spot hanging in the balance.
Angry residents fighting to save a railway cutting from developers were furious to learn that an order made by the council, which officially defines the area as a footpath, is incorrectly worded.
The mistake, highlighted by the Government's Planning Inspectorate, means residents' attempts to block proposals by Blackthorne Homes to develop the land, between Long Lane and Hollycroft Avenue in Darcy Lever, have suffered a serious setback.
Helen Ireland, from the Darcy Lever Residents' Association, said: "I was furious when I read the Inspectorate's response. The council can't treat residents this way.
"We've fought long and hard for this footpath. The council has supported us until now, so I just can't believe what's happened." Local councillor Sean Hornby said: "We have spent a great deal of time and effort getting this issue to the Inspectorate and I believe we would have won this dispute. Now all this is in jeopardy."
Residents claim the land is home to nesting birds, a colony of bats and other wildlife, and has been walked along by local people for 38 years.
Bolton Council originally designated the former railway line as a footpath last November.
Blackthorne Homes, which wants to build 50 homes on the site, appealed against the footpath and, in June, the council upheld its original decision.
It sent documentation to David Milliband, the Secretary of State for Rural Affairs, in the hope he would also uphold their decision.
But a Planning Inspectorate response, sent to Bolton North- east MP David Crausby, stated that the order sent by Bolton Council's legal services department was incorrectly drafted.
A representative for the Inspectorate said: "The Secretary of State takes the view that a fundamental error such as this is fatal to the validity of the Order."
Now Mr Crausby is calling on the council to resubmit the draft.
He said: "This footpath is a really important issue. Council officials are employed to deal with these matters and should never have got something like this wrong.
"It's a campaign very close to my heart. This is an important piece of land and a key recreational site for people in the area."
A council spokesman said: "We were satisfied that the order was drafted correctly and we have written to the Planning Inspectorate querying the decision and have asked them to reconsider it as a matter of priority."
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