Storm over plan to
extend giant tip site
by David Skentelbery
A CONTROVERSIAL plan to extend the working life of a giant tip site has caused a storm of protest at Rixton, near Warrington.
Local residents, action groups and Rixton with Glazebrook Parish Council have lodged strong objections to the proposals put forward by Collier Industrial Waste Ltd.
Planning chiefs say the tip at Moss Side Farm, Moss Side Lane, Rixton is already, in some areas, up to five metres higher than the existing planning consent.
They say the existing ?dome? of the landfill site creates a prominent alien feature in a generally flat landscape and has a significant impact on some 70 dwellings and 10 public rights of way.
The nearest homes to the site would suffer severe loss of amenity.
?The presence of this man made feature would always have an adverse impact on surrounding properties and public rights of way and would be difficult to assimilate within the surrounding, flat farmland,? say the planners.
Collier Waste own several parcels of land in the area, including old mineral workings and areas with existing permission to extract clay. Planners believe the area is likely to continue to be used for mineral extraction and waste disposal for the foreseeable future.
Tipping has gone on in the Rixton area for more than 50 years and has resulted in numerous planning battles.
Neighbouring householders say the tip site is already too high and that the area has been affected for too long by odours, noise, fumes and traffic.
They claim the development has a serious impact on the nearby Rixton Clay Pits nature reserve ? a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
Warrington?s development control committee will consider the application next week.
Supermarket bag pack
boost for narrowboat
by staff reporter
AN all-day bag pack at a supermarket by volunteers from Warrington Disability Partnership raised ?538 for the Wizard narrow boat appeal.
The event was at Asda, Cockhedge and was supported by local Millennium Volunteers and Ollie the Owl.
WDP spokesman Jon Menzies said: ?This will be a great boost towards the appeal of the final re-fit for our wheelchair accessible narrow boat ?Wizard? that will be completed in September.
?This couldn?t have been achieved without the dedication of all the volunteers alongside the generosity of the management and staff at Asda at hosting the event?
On the same day the supermarket also donated a DVD player towards the WDP accessible holiday home in Pensarn, North Wales.
Pictured with Ollie the Owl is WDP volunteer Naomi Cheetham who has cerebral palsy and is seeking help to support her attempts to finance a ?1,100 field trip to Kenya next spring.
“Rebels” pledge to fight
for seats on councils
by Terry Johnson
VILLAGE ?rebels? fighting to save Stockton Heath Primary School have pledged to contest every local seat in borough and parish elections.
The action group at Stockton Heath says it needs election victories – to sweep away local councillors who ?don’t listen? to the 5,200 people who signed a protest petition.
The red-brick school looks set to face the bulldozers following an amazing about-turn by councillors.
They voted 7-1 in March to retain the school – but then the borough?s executive board decided to sound the death-knell for the 96-year-old structure and build a new school.
The protestors, who call themselves the Stockton Heath Alternative Residents’ Council, say they need to ?change things from the inside?.
Spokesman Patrick Mullee (pictured)said: “The executive board approved demolition of this Edwardian school less than six months after a ‘final decision’ had been taken to retain it”.
Another protestor, Julie Kueres, said: “Cloaked decisions have been taken, behind closed doors.
“Many of our beautiful old buildings are disappearing in favour of new, characterless ones that make our village look much the same as any other cloned suburb”.
Villager John Sutton added: “We’ve tried for 18 months to establish a dialogue with the council, but have been ignored. They seem intent on pushing the refurbishment option into the background and imposing a completely new school.
They have already spent ?300,000 on drawing up plans.
“Perhaps the reality of the argument lies in the cash value of scaling down the school site – and freeing up part of the land for housing”.
A fighting fund has now been launched by the ?rebels? who still hoped to persuade planning chiefs to deny the executive board a victory.
Inspector rejects plan
for bedroom over garage
by staff reporter
PLANS for a first floor extension over the garage at a house in Peacock Avenue, Warrington have been thrown out by a government-appointed inspector.
Warrington Borough Council’s development control committee had refused planning consent for the development on the grounds that the scale of the development was excessive for the existing dwelling and would result in an adverse impact on both the house itself and its surroundings.
The inspector who considered the appeal said although the extension would not increase the footprint of the existing building, the extension would not be in keeping with other properties in the area and would dominate and detract from the appearance of the existing house.
It would fill the width of the plot, with no relief or alteration of roofline.
A council spokesman said: “The inspector’s decision reflects the view held by officers and members of the development control committee.”
Campaign to give a
boost to local food
by staff reporter
A DRIVE has been launched to put more ?local produce? on the menus of leading Warrington restaurants.
Food suppliers and restaurateurs are to forge closer relationships – an initiative by tourism board Visit Chester and Cheshire, which seeks to improve quality, choice and awareness of the area’s food and drink businesses.
A meet-the-suppliers event is planned for September 19.
Restaurateur Stephen Wundke said: “We are offering the complete Cheshire food and drink experience. That’s a unique selling point that few other counties can offer”.
