Councillor uges council to uphold exclusion of Buxton's Hogshaw rec from development
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Rachel Quinn, who represents Barms ward near to Hogshaw, told how residents living close by had “virtually no outdoor space whatsoever” apart from the community green space.
The council has allocated 17 hectares at Hogshaw - as well as land near Granby Road on the other side of the A6 - as part of its local plan to meet Government housebuilding targets.
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Hide AdAccess to both sites - delivering 675 new homes - will be served by a £2 million roundabout together with access roads at Fairfield Common.
However, crucially, Hogshaw’s two-acre recreation ground – located on the former tip – was not included in High Peak Borough Council’s 2016 Adopted Local Plan.
Teacher Rachael says the exclusion of Hogshaw rec was a “conscious” decision, “not an oversight” - and is urging the council to uphold it.
She said: “If Hogshaw playing field is developed despite local plan protection, what is the local plan worth?
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Hide Ad“We were told the plan was there to safeguard against predatory development - if the taking of a green public space is not predatory development then what is?
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Hide Ad“The local plan is supposed to protect residents from the erosion of public space and the danger of developers being able to build anywhere.
“Are people who are already disadvantaged in terms of outdoor space expected to lose their green space so that people in leafy streets surrounded by green fields can be protected from development?
“It seems very unjust that this can happen.”
Mum-of-two Rachael, 54, described how her own children had grown up playing at Hogshaw rec - as her small house on Nunsfield Road had only a backyard.
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Hide AdHowever, speaking about other residents, she said: “I’m incredibly aware of the field’s importance to the local population.
“There are some who have virtually no outdoor space whatsoever and without Hogshaw playing field - especially over the last year - their children would have had no easy access to green space.”
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Hide AdRachael passionately believes “someone needs to be brave and stand up for local people” over Hogshaw, however she admits High Peak Borough Council is in a “difficult” position.
She said: “There are pressures for development from central government behind these plans and it is incredibly difficult for local councils to exercise any real power over development.
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Hide Ad“The demands of central government for levels of development worries local councillors of all political persuasions and lead to horrendous and gut-wrenching choices.”
However she added: “On this issue I hope the council leadership will be resolute in upholding its own plan and reconsider.
“I would also call on councillors from across the political spectrum to stand up for the protections that were meant to be given by the 2016 Local Plan.”
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Hide AdCouncil leader Anthony McKeown says, if approved, the land sale would be conditional on providing “new and improved” open space and play facilities and any application would also need to deal with the remediation of contaminated land at the rec and drainage and flooding issues.
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Hide AdThe council is urging residents to have their say over Hogshaw in a consultation running until February 26 which is available at https://www.highpeak.gov.uk/LandHogshaw.