News / Environment
Greens urge fight over Eastville Park homes
The Green Party is urging people to object to a housing development on the fringes of Eastville Park which they say is threatening the local environment.
Woodstock Homes plan to build 12 houses on a corner of “scrub land” owned by Colston’s School next to the park’s lake.
Green councillors said the land should be conserved to protect local wildlife and claimed that building on green spaces – instead of brownfield sites – sets a dangerous precedent.
is needed now More than ever
Woodstock Homes said the Green Party’s call for action was “ill-informed”, adding that the development would make use of a steep, unused patch of land.
Gus Hoyt, Green Party councillor for Ashley and former assistant mayor, said: “Building yet more luxury housing at the detriment of the city’s wildlife will not solve the housing crisis Bristol is facing at the moment.”
His party argue that brownfield sites around Bristol have the development capacity for 30,000 homes.
Local residents were told at a public meeting that the homes would be “up-market”, with a possible market value of between £300,000-£400,000.
Woodstock Homes said two of the 12 dwellings would be classed as affordable homes.
Protect Frome Valley has sprung up to protect the land. Organiser Chris Faulkner Gibson said environmental planning guidelines had been ignored.
Campaigners have already claimed that pre-planning work had seen local birds nests and badger sets destroyed.
Woodstock homes denied the claims, adding: “We believe it is an appropriate development and offers potential landscape and visual improvements, with the planting of new native species trees and hedgerow.”
Colston’s School, a private school owned by The Society of Merchant Venturers, said the land was “surplus to requirement“.
It added that the money from the development would be reinvested in education.
The Green Party’s call for objections comes as campaigners fight for another sliver of land on the other side of the M32.
People have until July 8 to lodge objections to the new development.
Pictures from Protect Frome Valley