[Excerpt from the Manchester Metro News 21/7/06]
About 40 Marple residents met councillors to discuss PropertySpy plc, which has bought 10.4 acres of land off Brookdale Ave.
The land, formerly part of Hilltop Farm, falls within the Greater Manchester greenbelt and is designated for agricultural use. But the St Albans company is selling plots, on the basis that it could be re-designated for housing.
Hazel Grove MP Andrew Stunell said: This is a speculative scheme of the worst sort. It is outrageous and legislation is already before Parliament to stamp this out.
"Anyone who is tempted to buy one of these plots should know that they are lining the pockets of the promoters with no chance whatsoever of ever getting their money back or a house built."
Resident Tim Snellgrove said: "The land needs to be maintained properly. Also it is very, very unlikely that in the next 20 years at least this land will be re-designated."
A spokesman for PropertySpy said: "We firmly contest that our investment product could be described or construed as any form of abuse.
"We categorically deny the assertion that there is no chance whatsoever of purchasers ever realising their investment or of the land being developed.
"The high demand for housing means there is every chance that prime sites will be considered for residential development at some point."
[The controversial PropertySpy site can be seen by clicking here.]
