Broken promises from public bodies and big-name developers
THE Ferret tracked down details of multiple projects that started life as public land.
In 2016, the NHS sold the old Merchiston Hospital in Brookfield, Renfrewshire, to Barratt Developments for £20.9 million.
SNP councillor Audrey Doig recalled that during public consultations older residents seeking to downsize requested smaller retirement homes or flats to allow them to stay in the community.
Barratt “completely ignored” their requests until it struggled to sell larger homes, she claimed. The company argued it had extensively researched the local market before submitting plans and later expanded its site to meet demand.
Ms Doig later accused the developer of the “total annihilation” of nearby woodland when it felled more than 60 trees in 2017 to widen a road connected to the development, after promising to preserve the wood as much as possible. The council deemed the tree felling “unauthorised”.
The developer removed more trees after its building works damaged their roots and many new saplings it planted died because they weren’t being looked after properly, claimed Ms Doig.
David Scott, managing director of Barratt Homes West Scotland, said “a substantial area” of woodland was maintained and his firm removed “only what was permitted and necessary under the planning conditions granted.”
He said Barratt “is deeply committed to supporting biodiversity” and partners like the RSPB “help us implement wildlife friendly planting and landscaping”.
In 2018, it was reported that Barratt sold houses without fulfilling its promise to complete roadworks, with villagers deeming the housebuilders “greedy”.
The council also faced criticism after taking no action against Barratt, sparking fears it could set a precedent for developers to exploit the planning system without consequence.
The council said no precedent had been set and only “a small number of homes” were sold early. Scott told The Ferret the
The Ferret is an editorially independent, not-for-profit co-operative run by its journalists and subscribers. You can find it at theferret.scot and can subscribe for £3 a month at theferret.scot/ subscribe now-completed works “were delayed in agreement with the council to avoid ongoing disruption over the Christmas period”.
When the Lenzie Hospital in East Dunbartonshire closed in 2000, both NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (NHSGGC) and the council promised the site would become a hub for the elderly, dementia sufferers and older people with learning disabilities, The Herald reported. But in 2017, NHSGCC sold the site to Robertson Homes for £4.3m.
Senior council figures greenlit development plans in 2016, overturning its planning officer’s recommendation to honour the local area plan and refuse the green-belt development.
The housebuilder was required to contribute £280,000 towards local education, affordable homes for the elderly and a pedestrian crossing, the council said.
The Lenzie Community Development Trust, which claimed to have not been consulted, accused the council and NHSGGC of abandoning the elderly in favour of luxury housing and forcing them out of the area. The council argued that neighbouring communities were notified of the development via public exhibitions and newspaper adverts.
NHSGGC was accused by architects of using their proposals to market the site to the highest bidder. A spokesperson told The Ferret it “did not have any input into the decision-making process” and the site “was marketed and sold in accordance to legal requirements”.