City to fight green belt building ban

COUNCIL chiefs will mount a legal challenge after a judge overruled plans for a massive housing development that would link Edinburgh and Musselburgh for the first time.

More than 400 homes were to be built on green belt land at Newcraighall, doubling the size of the former mining village under a scheme by council-developer EDI and landowners the Dalrymple Trust.

The development would account for the total number of homes allowed to be built on the green belt in the city.

However, rival developers also wanted to build and called for the Scottish Government reporters to examine their objections in 2009. When the reporters ruled the 400 homes should be spread across more sites, including Burdiehouse and Dreghorn, council planners went against their ruling.

Last week at the Court of Session in Edinburgh, Lord Malcolm found their reasons for rejecting the reporters' findings were inadequate and ordered the local authority to halt the development once more.

Lord Malcolm said the council had cited "a series of glib and unsubstantiated assertions" as reasons for going against the recommendations of government mediators and also said "necessary investigatory work has not been done" at Newcraighall.

Now the city council will attempt to launch a legal bid to salvage the plans, which were first announced more than six years ago. A council spokesman said the authority was "considering the implications of this judgment and will be taking legal advice on how to proceed."

The court battle began when rival developers Hallam Land Management, took the case to the Court of Session.

The firm wanted to build 400 homes of its own in Burdiehouse, near the city bypass, but was told they would be earmarked for just 100, because of the main development at Newcraighall. Whether the city plan will be redrawn to spread the allocation of family homes across other areas, or whether the council will win an appeal will be decided in due course.

However, it is a temporary victory for who campaigned against the Newcraighall development.

Councillor Mike Bridgman, who represents the village, said: "The residents of Newcraighall will be pleased to hear this because there was a lot of concern with regards to the whole city allocation being in the village.

"It was felt that other areas, like Dreghorn and Burdiehouse, should take a part of that allocation.

"That's certainly the feeling of residents in Newcraighall so they will be glad that this had been halted."