A HOSPICE should be allowed to move onto Solihull Green Belt land and sell its existing premises for housing, council planning officers have concluded.A report to councillors recommends they back the hospice plan for land off Marsh Lane, right – which will need Government approval – and pass the homes plan.
It comes after months of fierce debate about the plan by Marie Curie Cancer Care to move from nearby Warwick Road to a 24-bed facility with 109 parking spaces.
It would include a conference centre – but the report says this would not be hired out.
A report by a Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council planning officer says the proposal is “acceptable” and in line with planning policy.
It says: “The applicant in their submissions has provided a sound case to demonstrate
that very special circumstances exist as to why the development on this land
with green belt designation should take place.
“Officers consider that the existing site at Warwick Road provides a poor standard of accommodation that no longer meets modern day standards.”
This was supported by criticisms of the existing unit by the NHS regulator, it says, and added the facility was vital for the area.
A study of 24 alternative sites found the Marsh Line site the “most appropriate”, it says and design was “will provide excellent, high quality accommodation”.
The plan is backed by a 11,131-signature petition, Solihull MP Lorely Burt,
Malcolm Harbour MEP and Solihull NHS Care Trust.
The report said of supporters’ views: “Palliative care requirements are increasing with the ageing population and the present hospice inpatient, day care and counselling facilities are clearly insufficient for future needs.”
Yet a 360-name petition opposed the scheme along with 105 letters of objection with concerns about use of Green Belt, traffic, design, noise and wildlife.
Marsh Lane Residents Area Group said: “The harm that will be caused by this inappropriate development is not outweighed by other considerations.
“As well as the Green Belt issues, we have strong concerns about the significant impact this scheme will have on road safety and the free flow of traffic in Marsh Lane and the surrounding roads, the inappropriate scale of the development on the character and appearance of the area and the effect on the living conditions of nearby residents.”
The report acknowledges it is an “inappropriate development that by reason of its size and location has a significant impact on the openness of the Green Belt”.
It must therefore be referred to the Government Office for the West Midlands so the Secretary of State can decide whether to intervene and make the final decision.
The application for the hospice’s current site is for 37 apartments in three blocks.
Ten letters objected to the scheme over concerns about traffic and its affect on neighbouring properties.
But the planning officer’s report says neighbours would not be “adversely affected”.
Members will be able to decide on this plan and give its view on the new hospice at the next meeting of the planning committee on Wednesday at 6pm at the council’s offices in Solihull town centre.
