Rogue builders In Liverpool

Jan 5 2005

Exclusive by Andy Kelly, Daily Post

THOUSANDS of planning conditions imposed on developers in Liverpool are never checked because of a lack of resources.
Now the council is to appoint a new officer to spearhead a clampdown on rogue developers who flout the planners' orders because they know they will not be caught.
One of the worst abuses of the current system is the replacement of trees ripped up to make way for the builders' bulldozers. Most developers are ordered to replant twice as many as they uproot, but many simply ignore the ruling, knowing they will not be challenged.
Other issues which go unchecked include proper provision of parking spaces, the style and quality of building materials used and delivering promised landscaping of sites.
Liverpool Council admits it is not able to cope with the number of applications approved every year. It says checking whether the legal conditions imposed on each application are followed would simply be "impractical".
The authority currently relies almost entirely on the public to be its eyes and ears, reacting only when complaints are received about new developments.
The revelation has angered some councillors who believe many conditions are never complied with because developers simply know they will get away with it.
The council has now admitted the current system is not good enough and is to appoint a monitoring officer to check conditions are met.
A council spokesman said: "We receive 4,000 planning applications every year and the vast majority have conditions attached.
"In fact, more than 15,000 conditions are attached annually and a big development like Kings Dock had more than 100 conditions imposed.
"With the best will in the world we or any other council will not have the resources to check every single condition of every application.

"Priority is given to major schemes and case officers are attached to them. When there are complaints from residents or councillors, officers investigate and respond to them. However, we recognise we should have a more structured system.
"We are going to appoint a conditions monitoring officer who will remind developers of their legal responsibilities in relation to planning conditions. He will make the major schemes his priority."
Liberal Democrat councillor Jan Clein, who represents Greenbank in south Liverpool, is particularly annoyed by developments involving the chopping down of trees.
A condition will often be imposed demanding twice as many trees are replanted, but it is rarely checked.
Cllr Clein said: "The planning department relies on people reporting when conditions have not been met.
"But it is very difficult to keep track of. I often oppose developments involving the chopping down of trees.
"But when they are ordered to replant them they have two years to do it because it has to be in the planting season and that makes it even harder to be sure if the conditions are met.
"They need a system of enforcement because it is poor. I have brought this up with (chief executive) David Henshaw and (executive member for regeneration) Peter Millea.
"Developers know they are not going to get checked and so will abuse the system."
The new job of conditions monitoring officer will be advertised shortly.

What all this then about the city council clamping down on criminals in the city....?