Newsome residents protest at Kirklees plans to build on green space

Protest at Mansion Gardens

 

Newsome residents have gathered to protest against Kirklees proposals to  build on 2 well loved green spaces.

Kirklees Council will soon be consulting on its plans to  build 32 houses on land adjacent to Jackroyd Lane in Newsome and a further 40 houses at nearby Blue Bell Hill.

Local Newsome Green Party Councillors Sue Lee- Richards, Karen Allison and Andrew Cooper are backing local residents against the Labour led Council’s plans

Councillor Sue Lee-Richards said,

“Both the land at Jackroyd Lane and at Blue Bell Hill  are valued by the local community. The Jackroyd Lane site is part of a green corridor that goes all the way up to Castle Hill and land at Blue Bell Hill and provides recreational space for people in the middle of a built up area between Newsome and Taylor Hill. The importance of access to nearby green spaces for good mental health has become really clear to so many of us through the covid lockdown. Kirklees needs to protect green land not build on it. There are plenty of brownfield sites we should develop on if we really care about our local environments.”

Councillor Karen Allison said,

“The access to both sites is very poor with narrow roads through built up residential areas towards the fields the Council wants to build on. It would mean lots more traffic on what are currently quiet estates. It will also be a nightmare for residents during the construction phase.”

Councillor Andrew Cooper said,

 “We are not NIMBYs, and we want development in the Newsome Ward. We have been actively seeking to encourage new homes on the Newsome Mills, a brownfield site, where there is good access. This makes far more sense than Kirklees proposals to build on local green fields. They should drop these plans and respect the views of local people"

Jackroyd Lane protest