Landowner disappointed after council switches to back rival project

Lord Gavin Hamilton had put forward land at Stanmore in Bridgnorth as a potential location for a garden village, a project Shropshire Council had supported and included in its draft local plan, despite parts of the area being designated green belt.

Lord Hamilton revealed they had worked on the project with the council for the past three years.

But, the council has now dropped the Stanmore garden village plan from its proposals, and is instead recommending the creation of a 1,000 home garden village at Tasley.

The authority is however recommending the removal of some green belt at Stanmore for the expansion of the industrial estate.

Lord Hamilton, who owns the Apley Estate, said that even though the Stanmore land is considered green belt, it is "unremarkable farmland", and he believes its legal designation was to prevent the area merging into the West Midlands rather than the protection of an outstanding landscape.

He said: “After three years of working with us to put together an exciting vision for Stanmore we are disappointed at Shropshire Council officer’s last minute switch.

"They have compared the two sites and concluded, somewhat surprisingly and with very little explanation, that Tasley performs better and should be allocated – yet they still recommend making the case for removing land from Green Belt at Stanmore for the expansion of the Stanmore Business Park.

“The Tasley site comprises a classic Shropshire landscape with numerous mature trees and hedgerows and views out towards the Shropshire Hills Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty."

He added: "The Stanmore site is sandwiched between the town, the existing business park and housing at the Hobbins and sits in unremarkable farmland. It might be in the Green Belt but it is Green Belt which seeks to prevent the merging West Midlands conurbation with Shropshire rather than prevent the natural and logical growth of Bridgnorth."

Lord Hamilton has also raised concerns about the Tasley proposal saying he believes the deliverability is "highly questionable".

He said: "The site is poorly connected to the town, threatens the continued existence of Bridgnorth’s livestock market and will end up as a massive housing estate with more land allocated for employment which local experts say is in completely the wrong place.

"Moreover Tasley (which was roundly rejected by three local democratically elected councils after minimal public consultation) will cause a massive increase in traffic with inevitable congestion, pollution and in direct conflict with the council’s declared climate emergency policies.

“Stanmore can deliver a sustainable and environmentally beneficial garden community of high quality in the right place to meet Bridgnorth’s needs for homes and jobs in the future.”

Rebecca Turner, from the Save Bridgnorth Green Belt group, which has opposed the Stanmore proposal, said they would fight the council's remaining plan to use green belt for the industrial estate in court if they proceed.

She said: "Greenbelt development is a last resort, whatever you think of Tasley, it is not in the greenbelt. There’s no economic justification for any employment expansion at Stanmore and it’s not a valid reason to change greenbelt boundaries. We wrote to Shropshire Council cabinet again yesterday, if they continue to promote it, they’re going to court."

She added that the complacency over development in Bridgnorth had been "shocking" and that the group had warned about the impact on the town, be it in Tasley, or Stanmore.