Farm site plans 'more Blackpool than Eiffel Tower'

An entrepreneur's plan for a farm site has been rejected by councillors, one of whom claimed the standard of proposed work had gone from "an Eiffel Tower to a Blackpool Tower".

Ribble Valley councillors feared the plan for Higher College Farm on Lower Road, Longridge, in Lancashire, looked too "industrial" for a rural setting and, in time, could become a retail site harmful to the town centre.

David Holmes, of Ribble Valley Properties Ltd, wanted to build 34 units, solar power facilities, car parking and road access on the site.

In a vote councillors said they were "minded to refuse" the plan.

The application will come before the planning committee next month for them to confirm the wording of the refusal.

Paul Walton, of PWA Planning, speaking on behalf of the applicant, told the planning meeting the application "aligns with the council’s aims regarding economic growth" and "comes from a successful entrepreneur and will support many local jobs and the local economy".

He added it demonstrated a commitment to show that the Ribble Valley is where enterprise can flourish, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

"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," he added.

Conservative councillor Mark Hindle said it was "really refreshing" to see an application which would create jobs and had "environmental design with the top specifications".

However, Labour councillor Kieren Spencer said it was "the wrong type of development" for the location and failed to "sufficiently respect the landscape’s character".

"What is currently a rural farmstead would become a large, industrial-style site."

He said the applicant for the Longridge site, which is designated employment land, had previously submitted plans "far-more in-keeping" with the location "and were rightly approved".

He described the latest plans as "sub-standard alternatives".

"Instead of delivering the Eiffel Tower, we are being asked to accept a Blackpool Tower. A far cry from what was originally planned."

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