Following on from the long break that characterises Christmas and New Year, it is normal for people to sense that the long haul to Spring holds little to celebrate, excepting of course the short amusement that is Valentines Day. We daily wait for the season to provide a heavy burst of the snowfall, and I must say that as soon as it is on the ground I enjoy getting out into Parlington to capture some delightful landscape photos. Of course with our varied climate it is something of a roller coaster, so you can never be sure of a snowy scene. Here is one from last winter of the former Gascoigne Almshouses.
Away from the history for this article to the present, this January has brought some excellent news on the “new town” front. After much debate during last summer the hearings before the Government inspectors about the proposed Leeds SAP (Site Allocation Plan) has produced a result, which is as follows.
The total new housing numbers in the Leeds district has been revised downwards, substantially. The numbers were heavily contested during the hearings and the long awaited revisal means that there is no justification for the two major schemes in the local area. Therefore the Parlington proposal (MX2-39) for 792 dwellings and the Stourton Grange site (HG2-124) for 1090 dwellings have been deleted. Thus the threat to the green belt at Parlington is safe. At least for the plan period to 2023. The deletion is based on the single premise that given the reduced numbers, there exist no exceptional reasons to take land out of the green belt.
Those with a jaundiced view of how the political system operates will be forgiven for wondering, as I did, what may happen beyond 2023. The inspectors made no ruling on sustainability, access, highways, etc., therefore the local action group SPAG (Save Parlington Action Group) of which I was a founder member will be seeking to establish a clearer picture of the future prospects for the estate. But at this time it is a clear victory for which we should feel proud that local voices can be heard in the decisions that effect our neighbourhood. Notwithstanding this significant news it is fair to state that there remains a serious housing shortage both locally and nationally and the objections of the action group sought to establish that the argument was not about new housing but about destroying historic, listed and well loved landscape in the pursuit of profit.