Campaigners could turn to law to save dog track Former manager says ‘travesty of democracy’ cannot stand
ALEGAL challenge could be mounted in the ongoing battle to save Hall Green Greyhound Stadium from the bulldozers.
Birmingham City Council awarded planning permission to create 200 homes on the site last week which would see the end of the historic greyhound stadium which opened in 1927.
Stephen Rea, the stadium’s former general manager who has been leading the Save Our Hall Green campaign, said he was consulting lawyers and also Hall Green MP Roger Godsiff about the council’s decision to award planning permission.
Euro Property Investments, which bought the stadium in 2014, applied for planning permission earlier this year to demolish the stadium and a 48-bedroom hotel and replace it with up to 210 new houses.
Objectors have previously said the project will cost jobs and the loss of a community asset while supporters cite the city’s dire housing shortage.
In June, members of the city council’s planning committee ignored officers’ recommendations, deferring the application and saying they were ‘minded to refuse’ it, but at last week’s meeting this was overturned with a 7-1 vote in favour and the scheme was given the go-ahead.
Three key reasons were put forward for refusal, namely loss of community facility, loss of jobs and low affordable housing provision at 15 per cent instead of the usual 35 per cent.
But councillors were warned that a rejection on these grounds would probably be overturned at an appeal and the city council would incur the costs.
No public speakers were allowed to make representations at last week’s meeting.
Mr Rea said: “Clearly, democracy has been kicked in the teeth here as we were not given the opportunity to speak.
“At the original hearing, the 12 members of the planning committee listened to the arguments from both sides and then voted nine to two against the application with one abstention.
“I received an e-mail from the council telling me that, at this latest meeting, no-one would be allowed to speak against the application this time but we were allowed to attend.
“This is a travesty of democracy and cannot be allowed to stand. My lawyers are looking at all the legal arguments to get this vote thrown out.”
Perry Barr Stadium, which like Hall Green is run by the Greyhound Racing Association, is expected to take up some of the lost events from Hall Green but Mr Rea said that facility was already at capacity and could not cope with any extra business.
Planning committee chairman Coun Mike Sharpe told BBC WM’s Adrian Goldberg show it was set out in the council’s rules that no-one was allowed to speak when applications came back to be determined.
He added: “The lease is up in 2018 so they could just shut it and walk away anyway.
“If we turn it down and it goes to appeal, and they win that appeal, it would cost the council an awful lot of money and that also has to be taken into consideration.”
Euro Property Investments had not responded to a request for comment at the time of publication.