New homes planned for old Bradford quarry site (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

Fagley Quarry earmarked for 500 to 600 new houses

8:00am Saturday 13th October 2012 in News By Hannah Postles, T&A Reporter

The site

The owners of a 150-year-old Yorkshire stone quarry in Bradford have revealed plans to transform the site into a development of up to 600 homes.

William Marshall, whose family has owned Fagley Quarry off Moorside Road since 1926, announced yesterday it is considering its “options” for the end of the quarry’s life, with a proposal to build between 500 and 600 homes and a new “local centre” with a convenience store.

The plans, which include land owned by Bradford Council, are said to involve “significant landscaping” and an “open space to encourage biodiversity”.

Mr Marshall said he could not reveal any more details about the housing mix or the make-up of the estate, which will be developed once the Council makes a decision on an outline planning application for the scheme.

But he added: “We believe the proposals that we have outlined deliver a scheme that makes excellent use of the site and we are committed to ensuring it is of a high quality in terms of design and also landscaping.

“We are consulting widely in order to get the views of local residents, and wherever possible their feedback will be fed into the final designs so that we can deliver as many benefits to the local community as possible.”

Fagley Quarry, which is owned by Hard York Quarries Limited, covers a 20-acre site and has produced Yorkshire stone for building projects across the country.

A spokesman was unable to confirm when work would start on the site, if approved.

Coun Geoff Reid (Lib Dem, Eccleshill) said the ward councillors were aware of the proposals, which would include primary access from Fagley Lane, but added they were in the “very early stages”.

“It’s a massive site and will be a tricky site to develop in some ways, but I think it definitely classes as brown-field land,” he said.

“There will be some issues that need to be thrashed out, including improvements to infrastructure because you can’t just put that number of houses out there without thinking about things like schools.

“They will also need to think about providing access from both ends.

“But I welcome housing on brown-field land which stops us nibbling onto the green belt land on the outskirts of Eccleshill.”

A public exhibition of the plans will be held at St Clare’s Church Hall on Monday and Tuesday between 3pm and 7pm, where residents can speak to the development team about the plans.

A Bradford Council spokesman said it was unable to comment.