I received an e-mail from Banks at 3.40 pm today informing me that they are withdrawing their current application and are not proceeding with the appeal.

This is not the end, however, as they will be putting in revised proposals ‘in due course’.

So we remain vigilant.

Here is the Banks Letter.

I have just spoken to the Planning Department who tell me that the public inquiry on Banks Ltd application to develop Mount Oswald will start on 10 June and is expected to last six days.

The location of the inquiry is still to be settled which is why objectors have not yet been notified, but letters should be going out soon giving us the details.

I have just received a letter from the Planning Department to let me know that Banks are going to appeal on their planning application for Mount Oswald.

This will mean that a public inquiry will take place later this year.

From the letter, it looks like all those who formally objected have been notified, but if you did object and have not heard from the Planning Department, do let me know.

The details of the appeal are deposited at Byland Lodge. any further representations have to be submitted to the Planning Inspectorate (details later) by 21 March.

I want to consult with colleagues first, but objectors will need to get together to organise the opposition as effectively as possible.

I will post some suggestions for co-ordinating our action in a few days.

The meeting of the Durham City Development Control Committee last night was packed out as it considered the application by Banks Ltd to develop Mount Oswald.

Following a summary of the (damning) planning officer’s report, two local residents spoke against it and then so did I as the local ward councillor. Here is my speech to the Planning Committee.

In the end there was little real discussion by the members of the Committee as the report and its recommendations were so clear cut. The application was refused by a unanimous vote.

But this is probably not the end of the matter. Banks have already tried to appeal once on the grounds that the Council delayed the decision too long. That was rejected out-of-hand by the government inspectorate - Banks had got their facts wrong (along with so much else in this case).

No doubt they will now try to appeal to the Secretary of State in spite of the opposition from the Highways Agency, One North East, the North East Assembly, the County Council and just about anyone else too.

The strange thing is how Banks have failed to attempt any discussion or negotiation with the Council over the issues that the application raised. They must have spent well over £100K on this application which looks as though it was doomed to failure from the start because it was deficient in almost every department.

 Is something else going on? We shall have to wait and see - and remain vigilant.

As expected, the planners at Durham City Council have recommended refusal of the Banks planning application for Mount Oswald.

The matter is on the agenda for the City Council Development Control Committee on Thursday 10 January 2008 (5.30 pm at The Studio, Gala Theatre, Durham City).

The report (which you can see here: Banks Mount Oswald Planning report ) is scathing about the application and has virtually nothing good to say about it. Indeed the Highways Agency has gone so far as to issue a directive to the Council to refuse the application because it does not address properly the impact of the development on the strategic road network around Durham City.

So the application will be refused which is excellent news for the hundreds of local people who have supported the campaign against this montrous proposal.

Nonetheless, I hope lots of people will turn up to the meeting to show their support for having this application tossed out.

The Northern Echo today revealed that Banks are already trying to go over the head of the Council by appealing to the Secretary of State against the time taken to deal with their planning application.

OK, there is a guideline period and it looks like the council will be a couple of weeks over the limit, but given the complexity of the application, the extraordinary number of formal objections (over 130) and the fact that Banks seems to have been unwilling to engage with the council officers in discussing these objections, not to mention that the Christmas holiday period it is not surprising that the process has overrun the guideline marginally.

Frankly, to me this looks like Banks are clutching at straws. I sincerely hope that the Secretary of State sees that it is more important to take the right decision than to take a quick decision, especially for such a major and controversial application.

I had an e-mail this week from the council to say that Banks have been told that they Council will be recommending refusal of their planning application for the development of the Mount Oswald golf course for a business park and executive housing.

Banks now have the opportunity to withdraw their application, but if they do not the application is likely to be on the agenda of the Development Control Committee on Thursday 10 January.

So things are looking good, but  we must not be complacent.

I have now done the analysis of the 200 or so survey forms on the development of Mount Oswald. They are contained in the Mount Oswald Survey Report that you can read here.

The survey showed overwhelming opposition to the planning application submitted by Banks Ltd, for the development of the Mount Oswald estate with a substantial area of Business Park, an area for executive housing, and open parkland. Only 3 people thought a Business Park would be a good idea.

The overwhelming majority of responses (85%) wanted the status quo to remain. Of the rest almost all wanted all or most of the area to be maintained as green open space for public use and access.

Responses to the survey are now over 200, which is quite amazing.

The press stated (correctly) last week that I had a meeting arranged this week with a senior person in the Banks Group. Unfortunately the individual cried off the day before, so I did not have the chance to investigate more what they are really about here.

There are indications that the application will be heard on 13 December, but that has yet to be finally confirmed.

It is not too late to make representations to the council. They will be accepted up to about 2 weeks before the planning meeting for incorporation into the committee papers.

Having gone through the responses so far all but a literal handful want this planning application  thrown out.

Around 50% state very clearly that they actually want the golf course left as it is with the vast bulk of the remainder saying that if it is ever to be developed then the priority must be for recreation and public open space.

Keep them coming in …

I have just heard from the City Planning Department that the building at the derelict filling station at Neville’s Cross will be demolished starting next Monday (22 October).

 I just hope this is a pre-cursor to a planning application to re-develop the site. While we really don’t want much more in the area, this has to be the exception. It is a blot on the landscape and needs dealing with sooner rather than later.

Now is the time for residents to get their objections in to the proposal to develop Mount Oswald Golf Course as the clock is ticking on the formal consultation period.

Individual letters tend to have much more force than petitions or standard copy letters.

Address objections to David Thornborrow, Head of Planning Services, 17 Claypath, Durham DH1 1TH. [The case officer is Peter Herbert.] The planning reference number is 4/07/00944/OUT/PGH.

Yesterday and today we put out over 1,400 survey leaflets over the Neville’s Cross city council ward asking for feedback on what residents feel about the future of Mount Oswald.

I am quite clear that the current planning application from Banks is totally unacceptable. The area is not zoned for housing and although it is cited for low density high class business/science park use in the Local Plan what Banks are proposing (developing 40% of the area for this purpose) is well beyond what is acceptable.

The traffic implications are also bad news. The application includes up to 2,000 parking places, so the local road network would have to cope with upwards of 4,000 additional traffic movements per day. Anyone who has used the A167 through Neville’s Cross as most residents do, knows all too well that it is close to gridlock at times; the effect of 4,000 extra journeys does not bear thinking about.

I have already had initial discussions with the planners in the County Highways Department and it is clear that they also have significant concerns in that area too.

All this leaves me wondering what exactly is going on here. The application weighs a lot (two massive files each about 10 cm thick) and must have cost a lot (the application fee to the Council is £25,000) but the content seems to be outside all sensible parameters.

This is why I really want to get some feedback from local residents about the future of Mount Oswald. I cannot believe that this is the final shot from Banks and as the local councillor I need to know what my constituents think.

If the overwhelming view is - leave it alone, then I will fight for that all the way, but people have also been asking why have we had all the extra houses in the ward (a 50+% increase in the past 20 years) without any extra facilities.

IF the Local Plan is used to force through some development at Mount Oswald, then we need to know what people really want to see and what residents priorities are to improve the area overall.

SWo if you are reading this and you have a survey sitting on the mantelpiece, please return it to the FREEPOST address given on it.

This week Banks have submitted their expected planning proposal for the Mount Oswald Golf Course. The main headlines are:

• 40% development of the site (against the 10% in the planning guidelines) - it looks a lot more than that to me!
• 30 “executive homes” at the south end - the commentary seems to indicate a value of £1 million for each property.
• A “prestige business park” across the whole of the northern end.
• A substantial public park across the centre.
• Parking for 2,000 cars.

The planning application has been flagged to go to Committee and can be inspected at the City Council Planning Office at Byland Lodge during normal working hours.

The planning reference number is 4/07/00944/OUT.

E-mail me to let me know what you feel or to find out more.