A MOTHBALLED petrol station could remain an eyesore until councillors grant permission for new houses there.

Since the Shell filling station, Leeds Road, Bramhope, was boarded up last week, residents of the successful Yorkshire in Bloom village have protested about the state of the garage.

All company signs were taken down overnight, and wooden boards were nailed across the windows, forecourt canopy and doors. The petrol pumps have also been removed.

Shell has applied for permission to build houses on the site, and aims to sell the land to a housing developer.

Bramhope and Carlton parish clerk Janet Sunderland has now taken

complaints from a number of residents living near the filling station.

She said: "It has just closed and it looks an absolute eyesore."

Mrs Sunderland believes residents are particularly concerned because the derelict garage stands at the entrance to the leafy village.

And they fear a small housing development intended for the site could be months away if the planning process is held up.

But a spokesman for Shell UK said the garage is likely to remain in the same state until they gain planning permission for houses there.

He said: "It has been mothballed. The site closed down for commercial reasons, and planning permission is expected to be granted in January.

"We recognise the issues, and hope we will soon get the planning

permission."

There is also some concern in the village about the lack of petrol

stations.

Bramhope once boasted three petrol stations, but now the nearest are in Adel and Pool-in-Wharfedale.

Shell said the Bramhope station was not commercially viable when it announced the closure.