Agency buys Akzo site to kick-start homes plan
STALLED plans to build almost 200 homes on the contaminated site of a former chemical factory could be kick-started after the government stepped in.
The Homes and Communities Agency has bought the old Akzo Nobel site near Hollingworth Lake in a deal worth £10m.
Planning permission to build 174 homes on the site was first granted in 2012 and again in January 2015 after years of delays.
Both approvals came amid fierce objections from the local community, who raised concerns about the contaminated land, un-mapped mine shafts and increased traffic.
But since 2015 the project has stalled, with Countryside Properties, the latest in a string of developers involved with the site, failing to begin work. And now, with the time limit on planning permission running out, the Homes and Communities Agency has stepped in a bid to ensure the project goes ahead.
The agency says it will make the land, which is polluted with asbestos and other harmful chemicals, suitable for development before ‘seeking a developer’ to build the houses.
In a statement the HCA said: “The Homes and Communities Agency bought the former Akzo Nobel Factory, a development site which has been empty since 2008, with the intention of providing much needed homes for local people. The site has planning approval for 174 homes granted in 2015 and the HCA, as the new owner, has applied to the council for permission to undertake some access works.
“Once the site is in a suitable condition we will be seeking a devel- oper who can build these new homes.”
But Littleborough resi- dent Barry Cropper, who led the campaign against the plans, criticised the move. He said: “The HCA website states that they are supposed to be in support of local people, so it is ironic that the public purse is now being used to bail out a private developer on a development that the public were overwhelmingly against.”
The Akzo Nobel fac- 2004 with the loss of 70 plans to build 280 homes tory, which processed jobs. on the site amid fears chemicals for use in fab- The following year over contamination and ric softeners, closed in Bellway Homes scrapped later plans by the Woodford Group to construct 165 homes, a hotel, pub and showground were also dropped.