A HOUSE owner in Addingham has been offered an over-the-odds price for his house so it can be immediately razed to the ground, writes Paul Langan.

But unlike the famous line in the film The Godfather, Michael Driver, of Bark Lane, has told villagers it is an offer he can refuse - and he is hoping others receiving the same offer will do the same.

Mr Driver was placed in a principle or profit dilemma because his home lies on the edge a prime development site where profit hungry developers are keen to build as many houses as possible.

However, they are frustrated by the lack of a suitable access to the site, described as Wharfe Park, in the Bradford Unitary Development Plan.

The site at present contains a saw mill and a field all owned by William Brear and Son Limited, and it lies between Bark Lane and Main Street.

In November 1998 a planning application to build 75 houses was submitted but it was withdrawn two months ago, mainly because of the problems of access. The land is now up for sale.

Mr Driver, who led the fight against the original planning application, told the annual

village meeting at the Memorial Hall that a Blackburn-based developer had contacted him offering to buy his house because it could be demolished to provide an access road to the site.

With a suitable access road developers would overcome the main hurdle to housing development being given the go-ahead.

He said that two other properties in area had also been contacted by the developer who had offered 'development' value for their homes.

"The obvious intention is if they can get one resident to sell they can get access to the field from Bark Lane. I have certainly no intention of selling," said Mr Driver.

Parish Council chairman Alan Jerome said: "We hope everyone on Bark Lane will refuse."

Mr Driver is the chairman of the protest group which employed a planning consultant to fight the original planning application.

After the meeting he told the Gazette that he would not be selling to make it easier for developers to get what they want.

He added: "There is a premium to tempt me into it but I am not going to go ahead - my conscience would not let me.

"How could I after leading a fight for 18 months and then as soon as someone throws some money into the ring to turn around and change my mind?"

Mr Driver said he and the other objectors accepted that the land would be used for more housing but they wanted to ensure that any development would be limited to around 40 houses as envisaged in the Unitary Development Plan for the area.

The owners of the land, William Brear and Son, told the Gazette that they had no comment to make about the future of the site.

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