Speedway decision on Thursday
The application for permanent planning permission for the Speedway at Perry Barr is to go to the planning committee on Thursday.
The current recommendation to the committee, from the city's planning officers, is to refuse the application.
That is because the council's environmental protection department have advised there is no way of guaranteeing that the noise can be controlled. They argue that the reduction of 10db promised through new exhaust systems cannot be enforced if it does not go ahead and concur with local residents and businesses that the current level of noise is not tolerable.They also confirm what we have been saying - that the planning decision is the best point to settle problems of noise.
In addition there have been heavyweight submissisions from Birmingham City University as well as many from local residents.
Speedway have apparently collected more than 500 signatures of support, including some from residents around the track.
When the return of Speedway was given temporary permission three years ago, the planning committee overruled the advice of officers to refuse it.
We have proposed that a sound proofed high fence be erected on the west side of the site, which adjoins the River Tame. We believe if sound-proofed fences can be used on the motorway they can also be used by the Speedway. The Speedway have told us that this would cost them at least £40,000.
Both Speedway and the environmental protection department agree that they don't think a fence will work.
We say it is a shame it was not tried, when we suggested it a couple of years ago. We've walked the site and note the noise is hitting the south-west corner of Nash Square most, where it is coming up the line of the river, past the factory buildings that lie between Nash Square and the stadium. On the west side of the track there are no buildings to block the noise and that may explain why there are so many complaints from roads lying the other side of the Walsall Road. As this is an industrial site, a high barrier would not be obtrusive.
Directly north of Nash Square a new FE college is to be built. That will almost certainly have evening sessions and could experience the same problems as BCU complains of.
Otherwise, if the decision goes to a straight reject or approve on Thursday, without any attempt at finding a workable solution, there will be a great many people upset.
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37 comments:
shame that anything good that comes to this city has to be shot down. I cant see the dog track surviving without Speedway either.
"In addition there have been heavyweight submissisions from Birmingham City University as well as many from local residents."
As I understand it the Birmingham University submission was made well after the Cut off date, which hardly shows a burning passion in this case. (Maybe something to do with the reported move to millenium point) And there are 14 seperate submisions from local people.
Birmingham needs Speedway.A true family sport.
Sounds like one big stich up to me. Birmingham City Council will be a laughing stock if this is the case.
The new college hasnt even been built yet as it cant get funding so it shouldnt even be mentioned in your bias blog.
Sounds like another victory for "the not in my back yard" brigade, championed by our local councillors. I want my local councillor to be on the side of local development and new facilities not scoring political points by aligning themselves with local opposition. The Wing Wah application at Clifton Cinema is another example. We're now left with a decaying, empty building, rather than an attractively refurbished building.
Hi anonymous, your facts are wrong. We supported the conversion of the Clifton by the Wing Wah, what we opposed was an extension to 2.30am. So far as anyone knows, Wing Wah haven't pulled out although the conversion is taking its time - possibly because of the recession. Agree that the mess round the site needs sorting out and the environmental warden service is on the case.
"Many from local residents" = 14
"More than 500 signatures of support" sounds like a petition, which is not the case - these are individual letters.
A terrible shame. I'm not a speedway fan myself but a concerned local resident that an exciting part of birmingham (the speedway team) will be lost
Many from local residents =14.And one dodgy petition.So much for Birmingham being the 2nd City. Even Leicster got speedway approval for next year using Birminghams noise monitering.
I'm no 'couldn't give a fig about anything' youngster but a 62 years old fella who firmly believes it would be a gross injustice if planning permission for speedway to continue at Perry Barr would be refused on Thursday.
I met my ex-wife through speedway, we have a wonderful daughter who follows the sport and speedway is, and always has been, a true family sport enjoyed by all ages throughout the world and one through which lifetime friendships are formed as I personally can testify.
For it not to be staged in Birmingham beyond this year is unthinkable and that's why I'll be travelling up from here in Kent to this Wednesday's match at Perry Barr to lend my support.
How terribly short-sighted it would be for Birmingham council to pander to a handful of NIMBYs.
You have a wonderful sports facility there which is starting to put Birmingham back on the UK sporting map.
A sport enjoyed by thousands of families without a hint of crowd trouble.
Have any of the Birmingham councils ever been to Manchester where there is also a stadium owned by the Greyhound Racing Association which stages Speedway?
That is in a far more built up residential area that Perry Barr, but they have no noise problems...but then again I guess Manchester is a far more successful city in the world of sport than Birmingham, with a more forward thinking council
Surely it's an easy decision? A family sport which brings great credit to Birmingham without crowd trouble, and which brings money to the local economy....against a petition with only a handful of signatories which looks like it's been organised by an even smaller group of NIMBYs
Steve Smith
You would help speedway a great deal more if you showed consideration for the people who live around the track. Tony Mole today stressed that speedway had sought to be good neighbours. I'm asking them to make a little investment in neighbourliness. It needn't be fans against residents. Please don't make it that
Jon Hunt
A small investment? We are talking speedway here not football. £40,000 is not a small investment for a speedway club and would bankrupt many. And for little or no benefit.
Cllr Hunt. You are right, it shouldn't be fans v residents. After all, the majority of the people who attend the stadium each week ARE local residents. You are as much our councillor as you are to the handful of people who have objected to this application.
As for those objections, the "many" submissions referred to in your blog amounts to 14 (funny how that number doesn't appear in your quotes on the front page of today's Mail), plus one from the UCE delivered many days after the supposed cut-off date.
Birmingham Speedway hasn't just "collected 500 signatures" as your blog grudgingly claims. Well over 500 people have taken the time to write individual letters and e-mails of support, setting out the reasons why we so desperately want the sport to continue in the city.
For what it's worth I am not against measures being taken to further contain the noise within the stadium, if it means the Brummies are allowed to continue in Perry Barr. After all, we can't hope to convert the entire world into being speedway fans.
But please Cllr Hunt, can we for once try and be proud of something this area has to offer. We have the most wonderful sporting pasttime within our ward boundary, a happy, colourful vibrant night out for folks of all ages and abilities. One that attracts visitors from all over the country. We are the home of the second most popular spectator sport in the city. Let's be pleased that the name of Perry Barr is known both nationally and internationally as the home of speedway in Birmingham.
There will be around 1500 people at tomorrow's speedway meeting, many of them from within the Perry Barr ward. I think they deserve the support of their local councillors too.
I dont think the local Councillors have ever shown any support for speedway in the Perry Barr area, not even a well done to supporting the Childrens hospital in there newsletter that comes into my home.
Its becoming very clear that if the Brummies fail to get planning permission, the blame lies at the door of Councillor Hunt and the Liberal Democrats.
And Councillor Hunt, you should be ashamed of your conduct. You organised your very own mailshot to all residents near the track, when the planning was lodged, to test the numbers of objections, did you not? Such was your over zealous attention to this, you even put a stamp in this letter to help people respond, did you not?. You gave everyone who wanted to object, every opportunity to do so.
How many responses did you get?
Yes David that is the feeling most reisdents have in the P Barr area that go to the speedway have of the Counillors have.And he is going to get it big time if planning is not granted hopefully starting in the next Election.
Sounds like ther has been some dodgy brown envelopes been passed around on this matter alegedly that is.
I wonder how many of the councillors have attended the speedway and if they honestly think from their own experiences that the noise, which finishes by 10pm, is a genuine problem?
On a personal note, I have travelled up to Birmingham twice this year to visit the speedway and stayed in the local area once for the same reason. I'd have thought the local councillors would be keen to attract business to the area.
The Park Hotel has been known to cater from speedway fans like today where some Edinburgh fans will stay at the new Travelodge aswell as the Park Hotel
David we circulated a freepost leaflet around the neighbourhood. This is something we routinely do to encourage people to contact us. We thought it was particularly important for this as the original consultation period for the planning application was very short. We advised residents that the planning application might well be the last chance to get anything done about the speedway noise. That has been confirmed by the environmental protection department. We also advised residents that they should/could press for noise reduction measures rather than an outright ban on speedway. That is what most did. Most would be happy to live with speedway if and when it takes steps to reduce the noise nuisance. I'm sorry you and others don't like us doing our job as local councillors to ensure that people get heard. Perhaps it's not done like that where you live.
I live within the Perry Barr ward, and I have personally read all the Doc and letters that have gone in to the Planning Department over this issue.
Facts are:
A, 500+ For Speedway - 15 against Speedway
B, 25+ living in Perry Barr Ward for Speedway – 14 People Living in Perry Barr Ward against Speedway
C, Jon Hunt did a petition and got 101 names on it. After doing my homework on your petition, I found out a lot of information, and that is Jon Hunt is a Joke, who can't organised one, the basic information missing, No road names, NO signatures, more people living in houses than actually do and how many people live in empty houses in the area in amazing, ALL FACTS, got the evidence to prove it, and that has gone into the Planning Department. Whatever the outcome tomorrow if the information that I have brought to their light is not changed, I will be taking it further, and a councillor who hands in False information like that is... well, No comment
Remember everyone, we have just seen proof ot it from Mr Hunt, if we lose our Brummies its the fault of Mr Hunt and the Liberal Democrats.
That mailshot you did, come on, how many replies? Answer it please.
As for your rigged petition that question was loaded, was it not? Loaded against the Speedway.
How you ever walked around Perry Barr Mr Hunt with a petition for the Speedway? Clearly, depite your efforts, if the true figures are put forawrd, the Speedway wins hands down.
You should be ashamed of yourself in your double standards.
Mr Hunt proved his worth today by cowering in Nash Sq and no one to back him up as there is only one person in nash Sq who objected. Why wasnt you at the speedway tonight when invited by the BBC you gutless WIMP.
Its because when the Uni decide to move millenium point the land will be devalued in selling land if they decided to build houses on it.Mr Hunt you are disgrace to the community to P Barr area who deserve better.
Well all I can say is Bring Back Mike Leddy!!!
And whilst we are at it, the meeting you organised for the local community, in June, attended by the planning people, which was publicised to include the Speedway application, come on Mr Hunt, let us know how many people actually turned up and spoke against the Speedway?
Thats a simple question - how many?
And before you ramble on, we were there.
The Council have given the Brummies a one year reprieve
to keep racing at Perry Barr, see today's Birmingham Post:
http://qurl.com/8ngkg
I think many would agree this is in spite of the efforts of the owner of this blog. When are the local elections anyone?
This blog has been flamed by three or four people in the last few days with a fair amount of venom directed at me personally. I am happy to accept they are not representative of the fast majority of speedway fans who see their sport as a community activity and would wish to exist peacefully within the community of Perry Barr. I hope that following today's decision speedway can work with the local community to ensure that in 12 months time we dont have the same problem.
Jon Hunt
Mr Hunt, answer the questions, directly please, that have been put to you.
1 How many replies?
2 How many people spoke against the Speedway at the meeting you called?
And, if you had shown your face last night at the Stadium, you would have seen well over 1,000 people, most of them from the local area, enjoying a great night out. But you could not face them, could you? You were seen wondering around Nash Sq on your own, with not a single local resident in sight.
Remember everyone, its the Liberal Democrats and Jon Hunt who has stirred up this issue about the noise.
Mr Hunt, the real issue here, is that you have seized upon a local issue, amazingly somehow ignored the vast majority of your voters, siding with at most a few dozen, and thats projected your profile. Got you on TV and the front page of the Mail.
And, as regards your remarks about how Speedway fans see the sport of Speedway (your last reply), thanks to you Councillor Hunt and the Liberal Democrats, the chances of us seeing the Brummies for very much longer are very slim.
Lets not misrepresent things Mr Hunt. The decision to allow a years extension has not yet been made. The councils decision is not to be finalised until October without the glare of the public and press. It will be interesting to see what new conditions will be attached to said application then. I still stick by my prediction at this point. As for working with the local community then stop getting in the way of that please.
Mr Hunt, if you think you are being "flamed" it's because you are enflaming the public by ignoring them, distorting the truth and expecting to get away with it by treating the public like they are gullable idiots.
There were 14 letters of objection and in addition you cobbled together a small petition. Over 2000 people vote every week with their pay to attend the speedway out of which over 500 made the effort to write their own letters of support.
If there was a vote, who would have won? The 2000 or the 500 or the 14?
Where are all the complainers on this Blog?
Who is representing the supporters of speedway who live in Perry Barr?
What value discussing speedway at the Ward Committee Meeting if you then forget the outcome as it doesn't suit the purpose of your objection?
Have you yet stated at what level of quietness you would be satisfied? Or are you hell bent on abolishing speedway (and greyhound racing, as the stadium won't survive with the dogs alone) altogether?
Forgot to mention. Your comment about FREEPOST questionnaires...there NO SUCH THING AS FREE POST!
One way or the other, the Council will pay the Post Office for these leaflets that were posted. That means you are spending Council Tax Payer's money on your campaign. That's the money that the supporters of speedway are contributing to every month.
That's taking the mick!
Mr Hunt,
Could you declare if you are in business, and, are your co-directors linked in any way to, er, not to put too finer point on it, to a prominent local education establishment in Perry Barr?
Mr Hunt,
The biggest attraction in Perry Barr, sporting or otherwise, is the Speedway. Perry Barr is hardly overflowing with family entertainment is it.Why have you effectivilily shut it down? You have destroyed something that is so very dear to so many.
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