Green belt farm building opposed

PLANNING chiefs have given the go-ahead for a new agricultural building at a farm at Walton – despite objections from the local parish council who claim the proposal is an attempt to erode the Green Belt.
The proposed development is at Turf Farm, in Mill Lane, Walton and also involves demolition of an existing farm building.
Planning officers say the site is an existing farm specialising in growing turf and there is a genuine need for additional storage space.
Although close to the A56 it has an isolated feel and is set in quiet surroundings with no immediate neighbours.
They see no significant harm to the openness and visual amenity of the area.
Walton Parish Council argued that there was an existing storage building on the site and a new building would be another “unnecessary blemish on the green landscape.”
They pointed out that the farm house was originally a store, serving the same purpose the new building is said to be required for. The result had been a proliferation of buildings in the Green Belt.
But planners decided the scheme could go ahead subject to the old building being demolished before the new one was started to avoid vehicle conflicts on the narrow Mill Lane.