Back garden homes fear

Posh streets in Stourbridge with homes worth up to £2 million are in danger of being "decimated" by backland development, it has been claimed.

Well-heeled residents are bombarding Dudley Council with planning applications to squeeze new homes into spacious back gardens, according to planners.

But councillors on Dudley's planning committee have vowed to stand against the "imm-oral" applications they say threaten to ruin sought-after parts of the borough.

The latest plan to demolish a bungalow in Quarry Park Road, Pedmore, and replace it with two detached houses were unanimously rejected by councillors at a meeting yesterday.

Councillor Geoffrey Southall said a number of similar plans had been received for the area.

He said: "I could cry at the decimation of our wonderful local houses. Ethically I am against the decimation of a salubrious area.

"What is this area going to be like in five or six years if everyone jumps on the bandwagon?"

Councillor George Davies said: "I think it would be immoral to let this development take place."

Pedmore ward councillor Colin Wilson added: "Everyone seems to be wanting to build in their back gardens."

A similar application in the same street in Pedmore was rejected last November after it was described as a "development too many."

Quarry Park Road is home to some of the borough's most expensive houses featuring swimming pools, gyms and fetching anything up to £2million. Former Corrie star Johnny Briggs even owned a house nearby.

Developers are known to have been targeting householders in the area about selling land on their spacious properties for housing, a practice known as backland development.

None of the developers known to be targeting homes to buy up garden land were available for comment today.