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08
Dec 2022
Losing horticultural nursery will be ‘big, sad loss’ for Harlow Hill, says councillor
A councillor has said Harrogate Borough Council’s decision to relocate its horticultural nursery from Harlow Hill will mean a “big, sad loss” for the area.
The authority's cabinet met yesterday to rubber stamp buying land for a larger nursery elsewhere in the district.
The move paves the way for a sale of the current facility at Harlow Hill to a housing developer, with 62 homes mooted.
The council grows flowers for its displays across the district at the site on Nursery Lane. It also sells plants to members of the public to bring in revenue.
Officers prepared a report that does not disclose the specific location of the land the council wants to buy, citing a confidentiality exemption, only that it’s in the Killinghall and Hampsthwaite ward and is valued above £250,000.
Liberal Democrat member for Harlow & St Georges Division on North Yorkshire County Council, Michael Schofield, told the Local Democracy Service the move away from Harlow Hill will be keenly felt by residents as many have walked there to buy plants for decades.
He said:
Read more:
- Harlow Hill and Pannal Ash residents bracing themselves for ’15 years of disruption’
- Plans for housing at Harlow Nurseries emerge
- 62 homes set to be built at council’s Harlow Nursery
Cllr Schofield is also landlord of the nearby Shepherd’s Dog pub and he decorates the pub with plants bought from the nursery.
He said many people enjoy buying plants there and walking through the Pinewoods and Valley Gardens afterwards.
He added the nursery also serves as part of a horticultural trail as it connects with RHS Harlow Carr and the charity-run nursery Horticap. He said:
'Need to move on'
Harlow Hill is not represented on Harrogate Borough Council after Conservative Jim Clark resigned in October. There will not be a by-election as the council will be abolished on March 31.
The council argues in the report discussed last night that a move to a larger site will enable greater commercial opportunities.
The Harlow Hill nursery is a significant earner for the council with its 2020/21 annual report stating it brought in income of £153,477.
Conservative cabinet member for environment, waste reduction and recycling, Cllr Sam Gibbs, told cabinet that the move away from Harlow Hill is “the right next step”. He said:
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