Tear Down Those Trees

PhilipD's picture
Submitted by PhilipD on Sun, 2011-03-20 03:01

A simple two-plank tree hut sitting above a Nelson park must come down say council officials.
"I'm sorry to inform you that we consider that your structure in this 'crack willow' tree is unsafe and is a risk to your safety and the safety of others [who] may use these tree platforms," said a council note tacked to the tree that houses the hut.

Nelson City Council parks team leader Lindsay Barber, acting on the tip-off of an anonymous killjoy, claimed the platform was "a bit wobbly and didn't look particularly secure.”

Oh my, you are right, Barber, that could be slightly risky and we can’t have that. Shouldn’t the council do the right thing though, and eliminate all such climbing risks by chopping down each and every damn tree sitting on council land?


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There was a program on Channel 4...

Marcus's picture
Submitted by Marcus on Sun, 2011-03-20 07:55.

...the other night about this sort of thing called "planning outlaws".

Watching the Government come around and tear down a perfectly good house, valued at 1 million pounds, was painful. It really bought home in stark images that they are really the mafia.

The son who paid for the house said with tears in his eyes that it goes to show you that according to the Government you don't really own anything.

Planning Outlaws

"Britain's green and pleasant land is protected by a complex web of planning laws, and it is a brave and determined person who dares to challenge the system.

Melody Howse's very British film tells the story of three individuals who have taken on planning regulators with extraordinary and sometimes disastrous consequences.

Jim built a straw bale house on agricultural land. He had planning permission for an educational centre but loved the house so much he decided to live in it instead. Jim has spent four years fighting to keep his home.

Mr Gulzar erected six-foot stone lions on the ancient Pevensey Marshes without planning permission. He faces a community at odds with his tastes, and the vandalism of his beloved lions.

And 76-year-old Nicole Harper watches in horror as the granny flat her son built for her is demolished for violating planning regulations.

As these people fight to the bitter end to defend their structures, Planning Outlaws charts the highs and lows that challenging the planning system can bring."

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