AN appeal last month for Solihull Council to reconsider proposals to allow housing to be built on part of Babbs Mill Local Nature Reserve fell on deaf ears.
Eighty-eight objections were submitted to the local authority, urging councillors to rethink the plans – which have proven deeply controversial.
The council’s planning committee had already granted planning permission to build 52 houses on the green space but had yet to give the go ahead to strip a section of land of the nature reserve status – which needed to take place before building work could begin.
Despite the local opposition, the step was taken at a cabinet meeting on October 6, removing the final obstacle to the development.
Sarah Evans, who chairs the campaign group Action for Babbs Mill, said that activists were “gutted” to lose the latest battle.
“We [will] hold the developer to account making sure that they adhere to every promise and planning condition,” she said.
“Our group will now be moving forward to ensure that the remainder of the park is maintained to the high standard that it deserves.”
A report presented to councillors said that residents’ main objections included the loss of an important wildlife habitat, overcrowding and the general quality of the council’s consultation process.
It had previously been pointed out that advertising the intention to remove the nature reserve status in local newspapers was a futile gesture, since neither of Solihull’s weekly titles are delivered in the north of the borough.
Councillors ultimately agreed to press ahead with the “dedeclaration”, having concluded that the need for more housing outweighed the issues raised by locals.
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