Businessman taps into new home dispute

Sep 19 2007 by Dave Black, The Journal

A DRINKS company boss has left neighbours with a bitter taste in their mouths over development plans on land next to his luxurious Northumberland home.

They say wealthy businessman Tony Robson will create serious traffic problems and harm the environment if he is allowed to build a new house next to his Victorian home in Morpeth.

Mr Robson is the owner and managing director of Waters and Robson, which bottles the famous Abbey Well natural mineral water and employs 93 people at its plant in the town.

His imposing Dacre Croft home, in exclusive King’s Avenue, is currently on the market for almost £1m – and he has outline planning permission to build a new house on an adjoining plot of land.

But angry residents say the building project will cause traffic chaos and ruin a valuable haven for endangered red squirrels and other wildlife.

They are now sending letters of objection to Castle Morpeth Borough Council in a bid to persuade councillors not to grant Mr Robson full planning permission for the scheme next month.

Neighbours are upset because the only traffic access to the proposed new house will be up a narrow cobbled lane to the rear of homes in Northbourne Avenue, where parking and passing is already a major problem.

Yesterday, retired lecturer Peter Dwyer, who chairs the Northbourne Residents’ Association, said: “The plan is absolutely ludicrous and I cannot believe that any intelligent person would allow it. The lane is very narrow and on bin collection days all cars have to be removed from it.

“This scheme will cause dangerous and permanent traffic chaos on an already crowded lane and will damage the lane during the construction period. Mr Robson claims he has right of access to his property via the lane, but it is owned by residents of Northbourne Avenue.

“The site where he wants to build the house is next to woodland which has red squirrels and other wildlife such as bats and birds. Mr Robson’s firm’s website says the quality of the environment is of the utmost concern to the Abbey Well company. Does that promise apply to his own property dealings?”

Yesterday, Mr Robson said: “The house at Dacre Croft has always had access up that lane, so there is no real difference. I have spoken to some of the local residents and explained what is going on.”

A council spokesman said Mr Robson’s application would go before the development control committee on October 9.