Campaigners blast 200 homes plan
A group of residents from an upmarket housing estate is engaged in a stand-off with a major housebuilder.
Cala Homes wants to build almost 200 houses on land next to leafy Florish Road in Erskine.
But members of Abbeyfield Residents Association are dead set against the plans, claiming it will destroy a green space and encroach on land owned and maintained by the householders.
Some of the residents turned up at the site to keep any eye on what was happening including Jim Gardiner, 60, who is chairman of the residents association.
He said: “It is one of the few pieces of greenbelt left in Erskine.
“It conjoins the town of Erskine and the village of Inchinnan. On many, many bases the town is overburdened. We don’t have enough infrastructure and we don’t have enough shops.
“If you read the town Facebook pages all you see – apart from complaints about dog poo – are the complaints about getting in and out of Erskine.”
Mr Gardiner added that the battle with Cala has been going on for about four-and-a-half years.
He said: “Cala have two conditions set by the council, which they have yet to satisfy, before they are allowed full planning permission.
“One of the conditions is that they must complete a third archaeological dig, which they’ve agreed to do.
“The second condition is regarding the council’s rule on connectivity that part of the development must be within 400 metres of the nearest bus stop or railway station.”
There is no railway station in Erskine and Mr Gardiner claimed there has never been a bus route in Florish Road.
“The nearest bus stop is up on Newshot Drive, the main road, and the nearest railway station is in Bishopton, so Cala cannot physically comply with that rule,” he said.
Another resident, 60, who did not want to be named, said: “I just feel the development will go ahead and it’s like all of the developments, they’re never finished.
“One in Bishopton was never finished, it was a construction site for years.
“In other words, they never really fulfil their promises.”
Another resident said: “They build the houses but don’t put in the infrastructure to support them, and we’re at breaking point here in Erskine at the minute.”
She added: “Look at it here, it’s beautiful. It probably will go ahead but not without a fight.”
According to Mr Gardiner, Cala agreed not to do work on the area of land owned and maintained by the residents association for a period of a month.
He added: “What happens thereafter, we then have to renew the fight.”
Cala Homes is proposing a development of 195 terraced, semidetached and detached homes at the Florish Road site.
A spokesman for CALA Homes West said: “Detailed planning consent was granted for the Florish Road site in November 2017, subject to planning conditions.
“We are now working on site to facilitate clearing these conditions, the main one being a full archaeological evaluation.
“We are in constant engagement with the local council, keeping them updated on the progress being made.
“The team are also speaking with local residents regularly to keep them fully informed with the schedule of initial works taking place. CALA is committed to maintaining positive and open communications with the community and will endeavour to minimise any disruption.”