Councillors meet next week to discuss fire station mergers project including Saughall Massie
Councillors meet next week to discuss fire station mergers project including Saughall Massie
Land off Saughall Massie Road Saughall Massie 13th December 2016 SAVE OUR GREEN BELT SAY NO TO THE FIRE STATION banner
A public meeting of councillors on Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority next week (MFRA’s Wirral Council nominated councillors are Councillor Brian Kenny, Councillor Chris Meaden, Cllr Lesley Rennie and Councillor Jean Stapleton) has as its last agenda item the fire station mergers project.
A report to councillors states that the Prescot fire station will cost a further £145,000 than planned due to “discovery and eradication of Japanese Knotweed; grouting of shallow mining workings; requirement for further boreholes and trial pits due to inaccurately plotted co-ordinates; and the discovery of further asbestos contamination”. A break-in to the site compound over Easter also led to a loss of £2,000 of plant and equipment.
The report states that in St Helens, Pilkington have withdrawn their offer of a two acre site in Canal Street as someone else has offered Pilkington more money than Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority, so MFRA have been forced to switch to another Pilkington owned site in the Watson Street works (which may require a further consultation).
A revised planning application for the Saughall Massie site (which is owned by Wirral Council) has been submitted to Wirral Council and the report author had been hoping that it would be decided at the Planning Committee scheduled for the 1st June 2017.
Due to the general election, it looks unlikely that a decision will be made a week before people vote, so Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service have told councillors it will probably go to a Planning Committee meeting to be decided on the 22nd June 2017.
Interestingly, despite an “intention” expressed to councillors in January to appeal the original refusal of planning permission, this has now been changed to an appeal of the decision to the Planning Inspectorate of the revised planning application (should it be refused again).
Wirral Council planning officer decides environmental impact assessment not required for controversial Saughall Massie greenbelt fire station planning application
Wirral Council planning officer decides environmental impact assessment not required for controversial Saughall Massie greenbelt fire station planning application
photo 15 Land off Saughall Massie Road Saughall Massie 13th December 2016 SAVE OUR GREEN BELT SAY NO TO THE FIRE STATION banner
The Saughall Massie fire station saga, already as long as Beowulf but with less dragons, reached another stage in the planning decision-making process this week.
No date has been set for a Planning Committee decision on the revised linked planning application (after the first one was refused last year), but a decision is expected on this revised planning application by mid-September 2017.
The nearby Girtrell Court site received permission for demolition in late April 2017. The Girtrell Court site nearby (although it does not have main road access) is roughly the same size as land Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority want in the greenbelt for their new fire station.
Applications for planning permission in the greenbelt can be refused if other suitable alternative brownfield sites are available.
One of the justifications for a new fire station in Saughall Massie is the proposed Hoylake Golf Resort.
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What are the new powers of the Metro Mayor to decide on planning applications?
What are the new powers of the Metro Mayor to decide on planning applications?
Planning Committee meeting (Wirral Council) 15th December 2016 councillors voting to refuse planning permission for a fire station at Saughall Massie L to R Cllr Pat Cleary, Cllr Stuart Kelly, Cllr Ian Lewis, Cllr Kathy Hodson, Cllr Eddie Boult, Cllr David Elderton
How planning applications are decided will change after a new Metro Mayor is elected next month. The Liverpool City Region Combined Authority will have the power (from the 8th May 2017) to decide on planning applications of “potential strategic importance”.
Whether a planning application is of “potential strategic importance” is defined in the legislation in categories such as large-scale developments, major infrastructure and development which may affect strategic policies.
The last category includes planning applications in the green belt that involve constructing buildings with over 1,000 square metres floor space.
For example the controversial Saughall Massie fire station planning application is in the green belt, but is for a building of 645 square metres (originally 737 square metres) so this would be decided by Wirral Council’s Planning Committee.
However the equally controversial Hoylake Golf Resort project will involve a planning application for the construction of buildings over 1000 square metres so could easily be deemed to be of “potential strategic importance” and be determined by the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority and not Wirral Council’s Planning Committee.
Interestingly, the revised planning application for a fire station at Saughall Massie includes the proposed Hoylake Golf Resort as a reason for a fire station at this location.
Why have Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service submitted a 2nd planning application for a Saughall Massie fire station?
Why have Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service submitted a 2nd planning application for a Saughall Massie fire station?
Cllr Dave Hanratty (on the right) and his posse 20th October 2015
A stranger rides in to Wirral Town in a thrilling Wild West tale about gold, greed, horses, the law and a land grab was the tale of how the pony club were turfed out of Moreton by Phil Davies and his gang. It was described as “this is not an appropriate action for a Local Authority landlord to take”, “accusation of dishonesty”, “gnawed at his professional conscience” and “unfortunate sequence of events” in an independent report (which has since mysteriously vanished) as to how the landlord had behaved.
However, Dave Hanratty and his posse were not taking no for an answer from Phil Davies’ gang this time!
The £300,000 for the land had been approved by Wirral Council councillors on the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority that were also on Wirral Council’s Planning Committee. The Planning Committee would decide which way the planning application was decided.
Of course, in the cosy world of politics, this was neither a conflict of interest that councillors had failed to make, nor a bribe, nor anything really that the public should know about as Dave Hanratty’s gang started going “Shhh!” whenever these matters were brought up.
In fact the public wouldn’t have known, except a brave and a squaw from the nearest reservation had made sure the public were told.
Had Dave Hanratty and his gang been foolish enough to not be diplomatic? Had lies been told to get the answers they wanted?
Dave Hanratty and his posse had had plenty of opportunity to turn back, but instead when the icebergs were spotted, he had given the order, “Full speed ahead!”.
Who will choose the lifeboats? Who will choose the violin? Keep watching over the next months to find out the thrilling end to this story!
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The Hitchhikers Guide to the Saughall Massie Fire Station Part 1
The Hitchhikers Guide to the Saughall Massie Fire Station Part 1
Land off Saughall Massie Road Saughall Massie 13th December 2016 SAVE OUR GREEN BELT SAY NO TO THE FIRE STATION banner
People of Saughall Massie, your attention, please.
This is Prostetnic Vogon Jeltz of the Galactic Hyperspace Planning Council.
As you will no doubt be aware, the plans for development of the outlying regions of Saughall Massie require the building of a fire station on your green belt. And regrettably, your green belt is one of those scheduled for demolition. The process will take slightly less than three of your Earth years. Thank you.
Oh, for heaven’s sake, it’s only a few miles away and they have a website you know.
I’m sorry, but if you can’t be bothered to take an interest in local affairs, that’s your own lookout. Energize the demolition beams.
I don’t know, apathetic bloody village, I’ve no sympathy at all.
Far out in the uncharted backwaters of the western arm of the Wirral lies a small unregarded village called Saughall Massie.
This village has a problem which was this: most of the people in it were unhappy for pretty much of the time about the plans for a fire station on greenbelt land. Many solutions were suggested for this problem, but most of them involved either building it elsewhere or keeping Upton open.
And the problem remained; the planning application was refused, but revised and lots of people were miserable.
Many (apart from councillors on the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Authority) were increasingly of the opinion that the whole thing had been a big mistake in the first place.
And then, one Thursday, years after the first 12 week consultation on the new fire station when the residents of Greasby told the fire service what they thought of their plans to demolish their library, one journalist sitting on his own in Bidston suddenly realised what it was that had been going wrong all this time and he finally knew how the world could be made a good and happy place.
Sadly, however, before could get to a keyboard and tell anyone about it the idea was lost forever.
This is not his story.
But it is the story of the fire station in Saughall Massie and some of its consequences.
But first a journey back in time to two fictional meetings.
“I have a dream comrades, of having no Conservative MPs on the Wirral!”
*cheers*
“But to do this, we will have to blame something on Esther!”
*boos*
“and her government!”
*louder boos*
“Any ideas what we could do?”
*audience looks to each other and one brave soul answers*
“Close a fire station?”
“No, that is not bad enough comrades, we will *dramatic pause* close two fire stations!”
*audience mutters*
“That’s not going to be enough!”
“OK, then how about closing two fire stations, planning to demolish Greasby library and community centre, then giving our Labour candidate the credit for stopping the plans while blaming it all on the government!?”
*cheers all round*
“Right, any other business?”
*there’s always one*
“But if we give our candidate the credit for stopping the fire station being built in Greasby where will the new fire station go instead?”
*everone looks confused*
“Name one Conservative councillor you dislike comrades!”
“Chris Blakeley, he works for Esther McVey.”
“OK, comrades, Saughall Massie it is then!”
“What do you *expletive deleted* mean the Labour Chair of the Planning Committee voted to refuse the planning application for a fire station at Saughall Massie?”
“Err, well, she did!”
“Well, get Cllr Phil *expletive deleted* Davies to change the *expletive deleted* Chair of the *expletive deleted* Planning Committee before it gets decided again then!”
“Err, well that’s not up to Cllr Phil Davies, it’s a vote of the Labour Group of councillors each year and then of all Wirral Council councillors.”
“*expletive deleted* democracy! Aren’t we the *expletive deleted* Labour Party?”
“Yes, but that doesn’t mean we should act like it’s a dictatorship!”
“Well we *expletive deleted* don’t have any scheduled elections (apart from in Claughton) this year of councillors to Wirral Council, so why not?”
“Because it would harm the Labour Party. I thought we were supposed to be on the side of the ordinary people?”
“Not when we *expletive deleted* have a chance to blame our own decisions on the government!!!”
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