An Appealing Month

Appeals have been flavour of the month at MAZE during September. We've just concluded the submission of evidence for two appeals. Both are to follow the written representations route which, in the case of an Enforcement Notice appeal for Morecambe Football Club, was forced by the Planning Inspectorate, contrary to the Appellant's request for the matter to be dealt with by Hearing. This recently introduced power enabling the Inspectorate to determine the route of appeals could well prove to be a controversial one where differences of opinion arise in more significant cases, or where an appellant feels the only way they can effectively take a planning authority to task is in person.


Morecambe FC had a modest disagreement with the Lancaster City Council over the presence of a temporary portable building which houses the Club's merchandise store at its Christie Park ground. The Club has experienced significant growth in its commercial and community activities since being promoted to the Football League in 2007 and has outgrown limited accommodation at Christie Park. Relief is on the way in the form of the new stadium complex at Westgate in Morecambe, where construction work is well underway. The Inspector has been asked to grant permission for the building until the new stadium is ready in June next year, or extend the compliance date of the Notice to cover the same period.


In Liverpool 3 years of negotiation and a 2 failed applications turned briefly positive when an officer recommendation for approval was secured for development of 24 apartments on a vacant former motor trade site in the City's Housing Market Renewal Area. The relief was short lived as progress was halted abruptly by a Planning Committee decision to unanimously overturn the recommendation and refuse permission in June. Committee appeared to be influenced more by the passionate pleas of neighbours and ward councillors than the facts of the case. An appeal was the inevitable outcome.

Both cases should be determined before the end of the year.