CONTROVERSIAL plans to build an industrial building at J&A Transport in Foulridge have been recommended for approval despite concerns from residents and the parish council.

Three letters of objection listing 19 points of concern have been received from residents.

They include the loss of light to nearby houses, increased traffic and parking problems, an encroachment on a current right of way and the size of the building,

Foulridge Parish Council supports the concerns and agreed there seemed very little difference between these plans and previous plans, which were refused by the Colne and District Committee in September 2001.

The decision was taken on the grounds they were contrary to local policy and would have a detrimental effect on nearby properties, particularly by noise late at night or early in the morning.

The refusal is the subject of a planning appeal which will be heard at a formal hearing in April 2002.

The current application, to be heard by the council on Thursday, is a re-submission to build a portal frame industrial building and demolish existing buildings with the main difference being the size of the new unit and its use.

Maureen Green, chairman of Foulridge Parish Council, said: "We sympathise with the residents of Station Road because their lives are going to be disrupted by all the noise.

It is up to us to listen to the residents. They are concerned about safety in the village, due to an increase of large wagons, but at the same time the village will benefit from increased employment. It is hard to say who the winners and who the losers will be."

The land would be used as a workshop for the repair and maintenance of commercial vehicles and would cover 402.5 square metres.

The new plans were deferred by the development control committee on January 21 to allow for a site visit and to allow the secretary and solicitor to look into the company's hours of operation and obtain verifications on its current operating licence.

J&A Transport Limited have said they are not willing to have any condition imposed on an approval that restricts their present working days or time limitations on the premises.

A report to the committee stated that it was the applicant's unwillingness to accept conditions, which would protect nearby residences from possible noise nuisance, that led to the refusal of the first plans.

Planning officers have recommended the plans for approval subject to several conditions relating to parking and the access road, a scheme of landscaping, a land contamination assessment and materials to be used.