PROTESTERS say their fight against a new Otley housing scheme will go on - despite the fact they are to draw up their own blueprint of how the development should benefit the town.

Members of Residents Against Greenbelt Erosion (RAGE) deny they are giving up the fight to save green belt land between Meagill Rise and St David's Road, but have been warned it could be too late.

Now t hey are identifying how the Taywood Homes' bid would affect the town to try and influence the final development on the 4.9 hectare site - but only if they cannot

persuade planning chiefs to reject it in full.

The official document - to be

presented to city councillors - will state what type of housing people want, how to solve increased traffic problems and improvements to a number of town services.

Joyce Clerk, of RAGE, told a public meeting this week: "We want to put forward a coherent and structured argument to Leeds City Council.

"If we cannot get it rejected, we need the conditions we want in place.

"We need to get into the planning process and influence it."

More than 100 people at the Tuesday night meeting heard how the land was already earmarked for housing in the Leeds planning blueprint - the Unitary Development Plan (UDP) - due out later this year.

Town and city councillor Phil Coyne, a member of Leeds' plans west sub-committee, said fighting to prevent the site being taken from the green belt was too late.

"That should have been made in 1995 when the UDP was being

discussed.

"We're not shy of putting forward the arguments, but once the UDP says it is available for housing, it is available for housing.

"However, doing this can provide a fall-back position," said Coun Coyne.

But the move sparked protests from many residents who saw it as admitting defeat.

Hilda Morgan, of St Richard's Road, was applauded when she said: "Have we given up on the idea that we should have no houses at all?

"On St Richard's Road we have 300 houses with one access and one egress and that's more than sufficient.

"I think you're being very negative. I don't want to see any development on that site at all."

The Taywood Homes application to Leeds City Council has been reduced from 110 homes to 65.

The meeting heard that 45 houses would have access on Meagill Rise, with the remaining 20 reached from St David's Road.

But building of any kind on the land would have far reaching

consequences for people throughout the town, residents said.

Children's safety and increased traffic was a key issue, as was the effect on houses below the site.

Billy Bower, of Meagill Rise, said run-off water from the land already flooded his garden. "We can see our gardens dropping.

"Water comes into the yard and goes under our houses, something needs to be done about that," he

said.

Coun Coyne said the land was too steep for housing and asked people to supply him with photographic

evidence of flooding and land

slippage already prevalent in the estates north of Otley.

Separate groups of residents

registered their ideas which were gathered to form the final document which will be circulated for

consultation and a further public meeting.

In the meantime Mrs Clerk urged people to remain positive. "We have to be realistic, so let's go for specific things which will stand up on planning grounds," she said.

"The more things we throw at them, then the more chance we have of making them think it's not worth it. This way we can try to get the conditions we want in place."

l Send your views on the development to Readers Letters, Wharfedale & Airedale Observer, 9 Orchard gate, Otley, LS21 3NX.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.