'We were promised the Eiffel Tower but offered Blackpool Tower instead - Lancashire landmark dragged into planning row
A business units plan for a Longridge farm site has been rejected by councillors, who heard they had gone from being offered ‘an Eiffel Tower to a Blackpool Tower’ instead.
Councillors feared the plan for Higher College Farm on Lower Road looked too ‘industrial’ for a rural setting and could also in time become a retail site harmful to Longridge town centre.
Applicant David Holmes of Ribble Valley Properties Ltd wanted permission to build 34 units, solar power facilities, car parking and road access at the site. His application was considered at Ribble Valley Council’s latest planning meeting. Paul Walton, of PWA Planning, spoke on behalf of the applicant. He said: “This aligns with the council’s aims regarding economic growth. But it is much more than that. It comes from a successful entrepreneur and will support many local jobs and the local economy.
“It demonstrates a commitment to show the Ribble Valley is where enterprise can flourish. It strikes the right balance and is deemed acceptable in all technical aspects. It is designed to a very high quality for sustainability and includes solar PV technology. It delivers on local plan objectives and is sensitive to its location.”
Councillors said they were ‘torn’ by the application - welcoming the investment and job creation on offer, but stating that previously submitted - and approved - plans for the site were more appropriate.
Concerns
Labour Coun Kieren Spencer said: ”I have no problem with the proposed times and I support the economic opportunities this could bring. However, I am concerned that this does not align with our core strategy, saying development in the open countryside must be in-keeping with the landscape character and acknowledge the area’s special qualities through size, design, materials, landscaping and site.
“While the site is designated employment land it is also in open countryside. So this committee has an obligation to ensure any proposal meets the highest standards.
“The officers report says the plan aligns with policy aims. However, I disagree. This plan fails to sufficiently respect the landscape’s character. It includes four large industrial-style blocks containing 34 units and has more has 100 parking spaces. It would fundamentally alter the area. What is currently a rural farmstead would become a large, industrial-style site.”
He added: “We know it’s possible to deliver developments which are more sympathetic. Ribchester’s Manor Court is an excellent example, as is The Planks in Garstang. Even the applicant for this Longridge site has previously submitted plans that were far-more in-keeping – and were rightly approved. The previous application set a standard and proves it is possible to deliver development that aligns with policy.
“I was not a councillor when the previous application was considered. I would have had no issue supporting it. But what concerns me is seeing a pattern of strong, well thought-out applications being approved, only for them to replaced later with sub-standard alternatives. Over time, we lose sight of the original benchmark This is a prime example of that regression. Instead of delivering the Eiffel Tower, we are being asked to accept a Blackpool Tower. A far cry from what was originally planned.”
He was supported by Conservative Kevin Horkin who said: "I welcome the job creation potential with this, but we have seen other applications turn into something utterly different to what was planned. Look at the A59 at Clitheroe. That was not supposed to be a retail park. But look at it now....Also this council's enforcement is not great. We have two enforcement officers. We used to have four or six? So, with a heavy heart, I cannot support this.”
Planning officers said proposed conditions would restrict the site to certain types of business and not retail. But in a vote, councillors said they were ‘minded to refuse’ the plan. The application will come back to the committee next month to confirm the wording of the refusal.
Blackpool Tower v Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower is older than the Blackpool Tower, but only by five years. The Eiffel tower opened in 1889 and inspired the construction of the Blackpool Tower, which started only two years later, opening to the public in 1894.
The Eiffel tower is estimated to have cost 7.8 million francs, this would be about £66.8 million today (€75.8 million EUR). The cost of building the Blackpool Tower was about £300,000. This is roughly £30 million in today’s value.
The Eiffel Tower is bigger than the Blackpool Tower, in fact it is almost double the height. The Eiffel stands at 1083 feet (330 metres) compared to the Blackpool Tower’s height of 518 feet (158 meters).