Hundreds object to housing plan for nightclub site
Local campaigners are concerned about the environmental impact of the plans
- Published
Hundreds of people have objected to plans to build a 23-home development on the site of a former nightclub citing concerns about local wildlife and the environment.
Local campaigners have said the green space next to the old Shorrocks Hill leisure facility in Formby was a place of "peace and tranquillity".
The proposal, submitted to Sefton Council by Broadgrove Planning and Development Limited (BPDL), also includes a 100-space public car park.
The developer said it would make sure red squirrels, badgers and hedgehogs found on site were not harmed and provide bat boxes if needed.
The site has sparked controversy since 2016 when plans to build 60 homes were also opposed by local residents who petitioned against them.
The scheme was eventually scrapped.
BPDL said the new plans included "significant benefits" that would "greatly outweigh any perceived harm" and it was committed to continuing dialogue with local residents.
The area is full of "amazing wildlife", campaigners say
Yvonne Irving, 83, has become a figurehead for the campaign against the development at Shorrocks Hill.
She said such a development was inevitable after the land’s status was changed from designated greenbelt to a brownfield site almost ten years ago.
"It’s beautiful here and is home to so much amazing wildlife and natural beauty," Ms Irving said.
"If this development goes ahead, it could well destroy all these amazing habitats and so hundreds of people from Formby have written in objecting to it."
As part of the planning application, BPDL analysed the impact of the proposed development on local wildlife and the tree population.
There is an acknowledgement that even the dead trees on site and the roof space in the abandoned buildings could be possible nesting spaces for bats, but that no evidence had yet been found of a local population, the Local Democracy Reporting Service, external said.
BPDL committed to providing alternative spaces such as bat boxes around the site to accommodate any possible bat population presently or in the future.
Applicants for the development at Shorrocks Hill were approached for comment.
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