Homes bid at tip not viable

Family housing is proposed for the 42.6-acre Stanton Tip site, together with leisure and community facilities, business units and small-scale shops.

The scheme is included in a Nottingham City Council land and planning policies document which is envisaged to form part of a new Local Plan.

But Bulwell councillor John Hartshorne thinks the cost of remediating the land after years of industrial use will outweigh potential profits for developers.

He said: “I don’t think it will occur in my life time and I am 71. Stanton Tip is an old pit tip. All sorts of things have been dumped there - not just mining debris. Industrial waste and domestic waste have been tipped in.

“Now nature has taken over and it has made it into a sort of nature reserve. It is in fact a very pleasant area for walking your dog. I would be sorry to see it go.

“It will take a lot of time and money and a very big desire to build houses which will have a value that will reflect that expenditure. We have had a couple of interested parties but when they have looked at the logistics and the cost they have withdrawn.”

The document has been published for a six-week consultation period ending on Friday, March 11. A report said the proposal would need careful consideration to avoid ground-water pollution, while a flood risk assessment was also required.

The tip used to serve the former Babbington Colliery and was latterly linked to Hucknall ‘Bottom Pit’. It is one of seven Bulwell sites allocated for potential development: the former Adult Day Centre on Bestwood Road (housing), Blenheim Lane (employment), Linby Street (employment, housing and retail), Hucknall Road/Southglade Road (employment), the former Henry Mellish School playing field on Piccadilly (housing and open space) and the former Henry Mellish School site on Highbury Road (housing, education and community uses).