A LAST ditch attempt has been made urging Coventry City Council to ‘respect local wishes’ and stop the sale of land on Browns Lane to developers.
A petition launched against the move has gained more than 550 signatures but Coun Jim O’Boyle, the city council’s cabinet member for jobs, regeneration and climate change, claims the information on it was ‘not factually correct’.
The city council told the Observer an application to build around 350 homes on the land was due before the planning committee on August 31.
A previous petition against the proposed development, which also includes a two-hectare care home, infrastructure, open space and landscape enhancements, gained 900 signatures and was submitted to the authority in December.
Petition organisers said the land, considered locally to be part of the popular Coundon Wedge beauty spot, should be kept in the ownership of the people of Coventry.
In 2017, the administration removed land at Browns Lane from the green belt and allocated it for development.
Campaigners also said the developer which purchased the site could control whether or not building took place.
Vocal objectors to the development have included Coventry Conservative councillors, residents and members of the Coventry Society.
Conservative councillor Ryan Simpson said: “The decision to sell off this piece of Coundon Wedge to developers is a political one.
“The Labour-run Council could stop development on Coundon Wedge if it wanted to, that’s why Conservative councillors have started this petition to stop the sale.”
Coun O’Boyle told the Observer the authority’s cabinet had decided to sell the land back in 2018.
“The misunderstanding around the land in question lies in that the area that would be used has been identified for development for Jaguar since the 1970s.
“The land put into the local plan in 2017 is not going to be developed, originally the allocation was for 475 homes and it’s been reduced to around 350 to address local concerns.
“We promised to protect Coundon Wedge and we intend to do that.”
The petition runs until September 29.
Visit edemocracy.coventry.gov.uk/mgEPetitionDisplay.aspx to sign the petition.
