Wildlife campaigners were accused of a ‘deliberate attempt’ to delay the process.
Stockport County’s plan to expand Edgeley Park is back on track – but wildlife campaigners were accused of a ‘deliberate attempt’ to delay the process.
The club’s plans were supposed to be approved by Stockport Council on July 3, but a ‘late and lengthy’ letter from the Edgeley Wildlife Reserve group caused a delay while town-hall officials considered the eleventh-hour objection.
The wildlife group is against the building of a car park on a patch of green natural land behind the south stand at Edgeley Park.
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However, County’s expansion plans were supported by councillors at Stockport’s central area committee last night (July 31), and are set to be finally decided by the planning committee, which is next due to meet on August 14.
If approved, it will allow the club to redevelop the stadium and add an extra 7,400 seats to the ground.
Edgeley councillor Asa Caton spoke at Stockport town hall last night about the plans.
He said: “The additional objection letter that came forward before planning and highways [on July 3] offers nothing substantively different to previous objections in my opinion.
“The [wildlife] group has had 18 months to put all objections forward, as had everyone else. The fact that this further letter came less than 24 hours before the planning and highways committee was at the very least unhelpful, and at the very worst looked like a deliberate attempt to frustrate the planning process.”
Rob Eyre, from the Edgeley Wildlife Reserve group, also spoke at the meeting, and repeated calls to reject part of the planning application.
He added: “Edgeley Wildlife Reserve is a 5,800 square metre re-wilded woodland, the ward’s only significant natural green space of any size, a sanctuary teeming with life.”
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John Bilsbury, from Stockport County Supporters’ Co-operative, said the club is going through a period of ‘tremendous growth’ with its push for promotion to the Championship.
“Attendances have seen a similar growth, rising from 4,500 six years ago to 9,500 last season,” he added.
“The club will have over 7,000 season ticket holders this season, and expect league games to sell out on a regular basis.
“This limits the potential of the club and their capacity to be competitive, as the capacity of Edgeley Park is just under 11,000, and the average attendance in the Championship was over 22,000 last season.”