Date: 14/08/2007
High Peak Borough Council has been informed that the owners of the Bridge Mills site in Tintwistle have appealed to the Planning Inspectorate, the Government's planning appeals body.
SCC Limited of Reddish Stockport, is appealing against High Peak Borough Council's Enforcement Notice requiring the removal of unauthorised concrete units and palisade fencing from the Bridge Mills site in Tintwistle.
The Council's Development Control Committee refused SCC Ltd permission for the use in January 2007, and gave them three months to submit a comprehensive application for use of the site.
A subsequent application for two industrial buildings, one of which is 136 metres long, with ancillary open storage, prompted over 600 objections from local residents and was later withdrawn by the applicant. At present the whole of the site is being used for open storage without planning permission and it is against this use, together with the unsightly palisade fencing at the entrance of the site on New Road, that enforcement action was taken.
The Council has four weeks to put together a case in defence of the enforcement action, and have written to all 600 residents who objected to the previous proposal, advising them of the company's appeal.
Councillor Tony Kemp, High Peak Borough Council's Executive Member for Regeneration, said: "The Council stands by its decision to take action on this development. The company has had reasonable time to resolve this matter and local feeling is very high on this issue.
He added: "Local elected Members and residents have made it clear to me that this development is unacceptable to them. We will fight this appeal to ensure that the unauthorised use is brought to an end, and this unsightly activity ceases. It is important that the Planning Inspectorate know how strong the local feeling is about this development."
A Public Inquiry into the appeal is likely to be held in the spring of 2008.
Anyone opposed to the Bridge Mills development should contact: Paul Eland at the Planning Inspectorate, Room 3/21 Temple Quay House, 2 The Square, Temple Quay, Bristol BS16PN, quoting reference APP/H1033/C/07/2050389. The deadline for objecting to the scheme is 5 September 2007, the Council will forward all the objections already received to the Inspectorate.