Evening Press Article about withdrawn application.
Sceme Withdrawn but protesters fear that the subsitute will be even worse
Evening Press Article – 13th Jan 2005 by Tom Stirling & Chris Greenwood.
An unpopular development opposed by hundreds of residents will be delayed by months after the owners of the site announced they intend to revise the application.
Contoversial plans to build a 38-bed care home, with residential development and an access road at Connaught Court, Fulford, have been withdrawn.
The Royal Masonic Benevolent Institute (RMBI), which already runs a 90-bed nursing and residential home on the site, intends to re-submit extended proposals.
These will include a new car-park for a neighbouring doctor’s surgery, and an extension to the site’s existing care home, along with their existing plans.
The first application included four blocks of flats, ten detatched houses, 11 three storey houses and a new 38-bed care home.
Fishergate councillor Andy D’Agorne said residents may get between three and six months respite from the development because of the decision.
“You could say that this (withdrawing the application) is a good thing in that it puts off any action, giving residents perhaps another three or six months before any work takes place.”
Fulford Friends’ chairman David Wilkinson, who has campaigned against the development, promised to keep up the fight once the new proposals were formally unveiled.
He said; “It sounds like they are going to increase the number of buildings, which is bad news.
” We will have to wait and see the new application to see what the implications are to our campaign.
” We will continue to fight this all the way. We think it will be a dreadful loss of a wonderful green space in Fulford.
” I am expecting a new application to come through soon and we will wait to see what is in that – but I expect it will be further bad news”.
Roger Friend, director of fundraising and events for the RMBI, said: “We have withdrawn the application and we will re-submit it. Whatever goes into the application is going to be in keeping with the surroundings. What we are trying to achieve, what we are doing, we are doing for the right reasons.
” Our application will be resubmitted, and it will then be in the hands of the planning committe as normal.”
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