Mossley Housing Plan Rejected Over Safety and Contamination Fears

A proposal for 17 new homes behind an industrial warehouse in Mossley has been unanimously rejected by Tameside Council’s planning panel over safety concerns and potential land contamination. The development, which would have replaced caravan storage space behind Acorn Works on the edge of Roaches industrial estate, was deemed to pose “a risk to human health” and create “a poor standard of living.”

The planned mix of semi-detached and detached properties would have required access through the industrial estate, a route that drew fierce opposition from local business owners. Harry Cyprus, who owns multiple industrial units off Manchester Road, told the January 15 planning meeting: “I will not agree to access off my road. It will result in a loss of land for the use of businesses in the area. It is not a safe site to introduce any further vehicles to what is already an overused road.”

Councillor Tafheen Sharif, representing Mossley ward, raised additional concerns about the site’s industrial past, noting the land formerly housed gas works. “I understand a planning application was refused many years ago for caravans for residential purposes, due to contamination concerns,” she said. “Concrete, Japanese Knotweed, asbestos and former storage tanks potentially impacting soil with methane, benzene, naphthalene and ethanol still likely to be in the ground are just a few of the concerns.” Neither applicant Mrs A Jones nor Mrs A Bradbury attended the Droylsden meeting to defend their proposal.

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