31 August 2018
Earlier this summer Lancaster University submitted a planning application (reference 18/00570/FUL) to install security gates, walls, a hedge and signage, all to discourage members of the public from using the footpaths across Chancellor’s Wharf as a pedestrian through-route. This was despite a legal agreement signed at the time of the original construction requiring a defined public footpath route through the site to be maintained “at all times”. The alternative routes involved either crossing Aldcliffe Road at points where visibility is limited or using a steep ramp up from the canal.
Castle Ward Green Cllr Dave Brookes has confirmed that the Chancellors Wharf planning application has now been withdrawn, mostly because the University’s planning agents forgot to include the south-west end of the site in the 'red edge’ application boundary, but recent amendments to maintain the footpath routes and reduce the height of the walls and hedge have pretty much dealt with the objections to the scheme - assuming the University doesn’t fight a condition proposed by the planners that any gates are locked in an open position.
Cllr Dave Brookes has also asked for entry points to be a minimum 1200mm wide to maintain a good level of accessibility, and he will continue to keep a close eye on further developments.
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