Proposal should be discussed in public at a planning committee meeting, say park users
OVER 250 Llandaff North residents have signed a petition to bring the proposal for a sewage pumping station in Hailey Park to Cardiff Council.
The aim is to bring the decision to grant planning permission to a planning committee meeting so that residents can raise their concerns.
Steph Wilkins, Chair of the Llandaff North Residents’ Association, said on Change.org: “Currently the planning application decision will be made by planning officers behind closed doors.
“Unless we submit a petition, the decision to grant planning permission on Hailey Park will not be taken by Cardiff Council planning committee in an open, transparent forum where residents and elected councillors can speak.”
The development in the park will include structures ranging from 1.5m to 4m in height, and a total development area of 550 square metres, about the size of two tennis courts.
Welsh Water said they need to build the plant to accommodate the additional sewage flows generated by the Plasdwr housing development in Radyr.
They decided that the best solution was to connect the sewer pipe from Danescourt to the other side of the River Taff within Llandaff North, and the most suitable location was Hailey Park.
Danielle Thomas, community engagement officer for Welsh Water’s South East division, said: “One option was to run a sewage pipe through the residential streets of Llandaff North.
“But, through planning and design, we have been able to reach a solution which means we can connect the sewage pipe into a pumping station that will pump that waste into the waste water sites in Cardiff.
“‘The reason we need to cross through Hailey Park is because we have a designated pumping connection point, which is through the streets of Llandaff North, so to run through that point, we need to connect through Hailey Park.”
However, residents feel Llandaff North should not be affected by the Plasdwr development, and certainly not in their park.
“This pumping station should be situated within the housing estate that it will serve and not on a diverse wildlife habitat,” said Rhiain Burberry on the Change.org petition.
Signing the petition, Pam French said: “The developer should have bought land to put this on, they will make a lot of money from the development.
“Public park land should not have been sold to accommodate the sewage of people in a development across the river.”
Residents have also publicly objected to the plans via the Cardiff Council website, worried it will change the nature of the park.
Ian Drew said: “Given Cardiff Council has just declared a nature emergency, it is inconceivable to me that any consideration can be given to building on parkland.
“Contrary to what the planning document says, the proposals are not ‘sympathetic to the landscape character of Hailey Park’. Frankly, that is an insult.
“This will be a massive blot on the landscape that will change the character of the park and how people interact with it forever.”
Residents were informed of the plans on the weekend of November 12. However, residents have not received any formal notice from Cardiff Council.
Instead, they were informed via social media by Friends of Hailey Park and their local councillors.
Ms Wilkins said: “The issue is Cardiff Council — we haven’t been consulted by them. Cardiff Council hasn’t had the courtesy to inform the residents.
“They have taken us for granted and given the seizement to Welsh Water without any consideration for us. It’s affected the trust for sure.”
Residents were also frustrated by the lack of out-of-hours information sessions held by Welsh Water.
So far, Welsh Water have held two information sessions, both were during normal working hours. After protest from residents, Welsh Water have agreed to another session on a Saturday in the New Year.
However, this will not allow residents to voice their opinions in time as the deadline for replies to the planning application is today, December 7.
“This is ridiculous,” Ms Wilkins said. “We need to stop it and buy more time, and have more transparency around the planning.”
With 250 signatures, the petition will now be brought to the Llandaff North councillors, who will submit the issue to Cardiff Council on their behalf.
Ms Wilkins said the large number of signatures in just a few days exceeded the Residents’ Association’s expectations, but the activism from residents was not a surprise.
She said: “Llandaff North people are very engaged and switched on, so it doesn’t surprise me. People do care about the park, and they feel quite strongly about what goes on there.
“The Residents’ Association picked this up because it affects people outside of the park with noise, smell, and possibly house prices.
“We were also happy to take it on because nobody was acting as a voice for park users.”
