The government has approved a motorway service station on the A1 near Kirby Hill after 25 years of public inquiries and planning battles.

The proposal from Dublin-based company Applegreen will see the service station built between junctions 48 and 49 of the A1(M) northbound, between Boroughbridge and Ripon.

A filling station, hot and cold food outlets, a drive-through coffee shop will be built and 364 car parking spaces created.

However, a separate appeal from Moto Hospitality Ltd for a motorway service station on the A1 near Ripon has been rejected.

In a saga which has spanned a quarter of a century, Applegreen’s application has been before multiple council planning committees, faced four public inquiries and been turned down twice by the Secretary of State and the High Court.

Councillors on Harrogate Borough Council initially rejected the latest plan in 2019, but Applegreen took the decision to an appeal hearing, which was held in February.

Read more:

• Villagers battle weary as fourth inquiry into A1 service station starts

• ‘There is a need’ for A1 service station near Kirby Hill, inquiry told

The inquiry, which was held by planning inspector David Rose and streamed onto YouTube, lasted two weeks and included multiple testimonies from residents, campaigners and developer Applegreen.

The proposed motorway service station site on the A1 northbound near Kirby Hill.

In a decision notice today, Mr Rose said after considering the evidence that the benefits of a service station would outweigh the harm.

He said:

“In summary, considerable weight attaches to the less than substantial harm relative to the identified designated heritage assets. 

“Loss of best and most versatile agricultural land is also a further negative factor of moderate weight. 

“However, individually, and cumulatively, the wider public benefit in meeting the demonstrable need for a motorway service area, for the safety and welfare of motorists, would outweigh that harm.”

Speaking to the Stray Ferret earlier this month, Gareth Owens, chair of the Kirby Hill Residents Against Motorway Services, said the group was prepared to continue to oppose the plan whatever the outcome of the appeal.

Residents in Kirby Hill have pledged that they “will not stop” opposing a motorway service station on the A1 following the closure of a fourth public inquiry into the plans.

Gareth Owens, chair of the Kirby Hill Residents Against Motorway Service Station (RAMS), said the group was prepared to continue “robust opposition” to the proposals.

It follows the closure of a fourth inquiry in 25 years into the plan to build a service station off the A1(M) northbound near the village.

The hearings lasted two weeks and included multiple testimonies from residents, councillors and representatives from Applegreen, the developer.

Read more:

• Villagers battle weary as fourth inquiry into A1 service station starts

• ‘There is a need’ for A1 service station near Kirby Hill, inquiry told

Mr Owens said the inquiry was like a “soap opera” for the village, with local people tuning into the hearings which were streamed live on YouTube.

He added that residents felt the service station was a threat to their community and came together to oppose the plan.

Mr Owens said:

“The people who live here are the people who want to live an open life in the countryside.

“If you put a motorway service station there, we will feel like we are a different community. There are an awful lot of people who feel that way.

“Our experience of living here will be changed.”

David Rose (top right), the government’s planning inspector, opened the public inquiry into the A1 service station in February.

Mr Owens gave evidence at the inquiry, which was scheduled for 11 days but ended up lasting for two weeks. Some of the hearings ran for as long as eight hours.

The government’s Planning Inspectorate, which handles planning appeals, told the Stray Ferret that a decision on the service station was expected “in the coming weeks”.

Mr Owens said he felt residents gave a good account of themselves at the inquiry.

However, he added that the group would continue to oppose the application whatever the outcome.

“We’re not going to stop.”

The Stray Ferret approached Applegreen for comment, but did not receive a response.

Rhodri Price Lewis, who represented Applegreen at the public inquiry, told the inquiry there was an “established need” for a new motorway service area between Wetherby services and Leeming Bar.

Kirby Hill RAMS have maintained there is no need for the service station on the A1(M).

The company behind a proposed motorway service station on the A1 near Kirby Hill has told a public inquiry there is an “established need” for the facility.

Applegreen Plc, a Dublin-based company which runs filling stations in the USA, UK and Ireland, is appealing a decision by Harrogate Borough Council to reject its plan in 2019.

It is the fourth time the development, just north of Boroughbridge, has been brought before a planning inquiry in 25 years.

David Rose, the government’s planning inspector, opened the inquiry this morning.

The inquiry is also hearing an appeal from Moto Hospitality for a service station at junction 50 near Ripon. The borough council refused the plan in October last year.

The hearings are being held online due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Opening statements were heard from Applegreen, the borough council, Moto Hospitality and Kirby Hill Residents Against Motorway Services today.

‘Urgent’ need for services

Rhodri Price Lewis, who is representing Applegreen, said there was an “established need” for a new motorway service area between Wetherby services and Leeming Bar.

He said the “primary function” of services is to support safety and welfare of drivers.

Read more:

• Villagers battle weary as fourth inquiry into A1 service station starts

• A1 service station plan to enter fourth inquiry

• Two A1 service station appeals to be heard in New Year

Mr Price Lewis argued that government policy now required services to be located no more than 28 miles apart and that the distance between Wetherby and Leeming Bar exceeded this.

He told the inquiry:

“There is a need for a motorway service area and the Applegreen site is well placed to meet that need.”

He added the £40 million Applegreen site would create a “substantial amount” of new jobs.

Addressing concerns the site would encroach into the open countryside, Mr Price Lewis said it was “inevitable” and “inescapable” that agricultural land would have to be used “if the need is to be met”.

The site off the A1 northbound between junctions 48 and 49, where multiple plans for a motorway service station have been submitted.

Meanwhile, Peter Dixon, speaking on behalf of Moto Hospitality, said the proposed services near Ripon would better serve the A1.

He told the inquiry that a delay in the upgrade at Leeming Bar, which was given permission in 2012, demonstrated an “urgent” need for a new service station.

Developers “will not take no for an answer”

Stephen Wale, representing Harrogate Borough Council, told the inquiry there was no need for the services.

He added the Applegreen site would encroach into open countryside and harm the landscape.

Mr Wale said drivers already had the benefit of two services within a short distance of each other and that the proposed site was not allocated in the council’s Local Plan, which is the blueprint for future planning in the district.

The motorway service station site, as proposed by Applegreen, on the A1 northbound near Kirby Hill.

He said:

“In short, there is no need for either of the appeal schemes.

“There is an existing motorway service area at Wetherby. There is a motorway rest area at Leeming Bar, controlled by Moto, and development has begun there with respect to a planning permission granted for a motorway service area.”

The inquiry also heard from Gareth Owens, chair of Kirby Hill RAMS, who spoke on behalf of residents.

He said the Applegreen site had already been rejected by councillors, inspectors and the High Court multiple times over the last 25 years.

Mr Owens said: 

“The question that local people are asking, sir, is ‘why are we even here again’? 

“The answer, sadly, is that this site has a recalcitrant promoter who, despite 25 years of refusal, will not take ‘no’ for an answer, because they have no respect for the properly-taken decisions of the planning system.”

He added that the residents’ group disagreed with claims from the developer that the distance between the two current services was 28 miles.

Mr Owens said the service station was not needed and would be an “unnecessary development”.

The inquiry is expected to continue for 11 days.

After 25 years of multiple inquiries and court hearings, another inquiry into building a motorway service station A1 near Kirby Hill is set to open today.

It will be the fourth time the proposal has gone before a planning inspector since 1996.

The ongoing saga has left residents feeling battle weary. They have described it as “a burden on the village”.

Quarter of a century of hearings

In October 1996, Heaver Ive Associates, a property developer, submitted a planning application to Harrogate Borough Council for a 24/7 service station between junctions 48 and 49 on the A1 northbound.

It would become the first in a long running saga pitting residents against developers that would eventually reach London’s High Court and the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government.

After initially seeing permission granted after a public inquiry in 1999, a High Court judge quashed the decision just 12 months later.

From there, the plans failed to convince both Harrogate Borough Councillors and planning inspectors in 2005 and 2012.

The motorway service station site, as proposed by Applegreen, on the A1 northbound near Kirby Hill.

On both occasions, the Secretary of State opted to approve a different service station to serve the A1.

In 2005, Wetherby services were given the green light to be built. Approval to upgrade Leeming Bar followed seven years later.

After successive refusals by Harrogate Borough Council, Dublin-based Applegreen Plc, which runs petrol stations in the UK, United States and Ireland, submitted a fresh proposal.

The company’s plans in 2018 promised creating a spot to “refresh in a comfortable and welcoming environment”.

But, a year later, councillors denied permission again on the grounds that the site was not suitable for a service station and was not included in the district Local Plan.

The authority said in a decision notice that the development was “unsustainable” and would encroach into the open countryside resulting in “harm to the landscape and irreversible damage to agricultural land”.

Read more:

• Villagers battle weary as fourth inquiry into A1 service station starts

• Motorway services plan near Ripon rejected

• Two A1 service station appeals to be heard in New Year

Applegreen appealed the decision in January last year, but the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic delayed the subsequent inquiry until this year.

What is the latest proposal?

The latest plans would see a service station built on the west side of the A1(M) north of the B6265 between Boroughbridge and Ripon.

A bridge would connect the site on the northbound carriageway with the southbound, while roundabouts with slip roads would connect the site with the A1.

Included in the application is a filling station, hot and cold food outlets and a drive-through coffee shop.

It also includes parking spaces for 364 cars, 90 heavy goods vehicles, 20 motorcycles, 18 coaches and 13 caravans.

What happens now?

The government’s Planning Inspectorate will open a public inquiry today.

The inspector will hear both the Applegreen and an application from Moto Hospitality for a service station near Ripon at junction 50, which was also refused.

A spokesperson for the Planning Inspectorate said that both would be considered by one inspector “in the interests of efficiency” because they have common issues and are within the same local authority area.

An inspector will hear the case and publish a judgement at a later date.

Residents in Kirby Hill have said plans for a motorway service station have been “a burden” on the village for the past 25 years.

Kirkby Hill Residents Against Motorway Services (RAMS) have campaigned against four applications on the site on the A1 northbound, which is just 500 yards from the village.

In a saga which has spanned a quarter of a century, the application has been before multiple council planning committees, faced three public inquiries and been turned down twice by the Secretary of State and the High Court.

Now, residents are set for a fourth public inquiry tomorrow after Applegreen, the latest developer to have submitted a proposal, has appealed against another rejection by Harrogate Borough Council.

Gareth Owens, chair of the RAMS since 2002, said the village is tired of fighting the proposals and expect them to come back every five years.

He said:

“The thing people say to me is ‘when will no mean no?’.

“This is the fourth public inquiry in 25 years and it’s a burden on the village.”

The motorway service station site, as proposed by Applegreen, on the A1 northbound near Kirby Hill.

Mr Owens and his team will once again mobilise for the inquiry tomorrow.

Twenty-two residents will give evidence to the inquiry, which is being held online due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Read more:

• Kirby Hill residents prepare to continue motorway services fight

• Motorway services plan near Ripon rejected

• Two A1 service station appeals to be heard in New Year

Residents are expected to argue that there is no need for another service station on the A1 and that the development would do more harm than good.

In evidence due before the inquiry, they will say that the Secretary of State refused permission for the Kirby Hill site twice in favour of a station at Wetherby in 2003 and an upgrade to Leeming Bar in 2012. They will also say that the development is contrary to the newly adopted Harrogate district local plan.

Gareth Owens, chair of the Kirby Hill RAMS, speaking against the application at Harrogate Borough Council’s planning committee. Picture: Kirby Hill RAMS

While the last quarter of a century has been difficult for residents, Mr Owens said they are determined to see off another attempt to build on the site.

He said:

“It’s taken up a large amount of time and effort.

“One of the things we say is what we could have done to benefit the community if we were not fighting this.

“But we are determined to see this off. That been said, it has brought the community closer together.”

The Stray Ferret contacted Applegreen for comment, but did not receive a response by time of publication. The company said previously that it would not be appropriate to comment until the appeal had been heard.

Houses at a newly completed housing development at Kirby Hill, near Boroughbridge, are being offered to key workers with a 5% discount.

Developer Caedmon Homes says the discount will be applied to three and four bed houses and could add up to a £19,000 reduction on the price.

The Priory Meadows site is a development of 34 homes ranging from two-bedroom bungalows to five-bedroom detached homes, with prices starting at £377,500. James Baker of agent Preston Baker said:

“As the world slowly gets back to normal after the global pandemic, we have hosted a number of open weekends at Priory Meadows and the reaction has been phenomenal. We were so incredibly busy last weekend that we opened on the Monday as well – and that was equally stacked out.

“The upshot is that we have agreed four sales since lockdown, which is a superb return – and a massive endorsement of this stunning development. There are now only 12 houses left to buy.

“As a special thank you to the selfless key workers during Covid-19, we are offering them a five per cent discount on this site for two three/four bed houses, which are the same house type as the show home. That equates to a discount of almost £19,000.”

The development has proved popular even over lockdown with 60% of the house already sold.

Read more:

• Harrogate Borough Council has been “steamrollering” through plans to build a 3000 house settlement in Green Hammerton. 
• A plan for 270 homes and a primary school on Whinney Lane has been submitted. 

Simon Bowler, a Yorkshire-based landscape architect, has crafted three bespoke porches for the development’s flagship houses.

Priory Meadows has been shortlisted for Residential Development of the Year (fewer than 50 homes) in the Yorkshire Property Industry Awards, alongside three other developments – including one other in the Harrogate district, The Chase on Harlow Hill, Harrogate.

Residents living near a proposed motorway service area are preparing to fight a fifth application to develop the site.

Kirby Hill Residents Against Motorway Services (RAMS) say they will protest at developer Applegreen’s AGM in Dublin, if current travel restrictions are lifted.

The company’s application for the site along the A1(M) was rejected by Harrogate Borough Council’s planning committee in November last year, but an appeal was lodged in February. Now, the residents’ group is urging Applegreen to drop the plans rather than waste further money in pursuing the project.

Coun Nick Brown, who represents the ward on Harrogate Borough Council, said:

“As a former main board director of a company quoted on the London Stock Exchange, I would like to ask CEO Bob Etchingham and the directors of Applegreen to take a really close look at what they are doing here.

Speculatively ‘having a go’ at getting planning permission is one thing, but the Local Planning Authority has given six good reasons for refusal, on the back of four previous projects at this site that have gone the same way, three of them after Public Inquiry. Given the current business climate, I don’t understand why Applegreen is continuing to invest in such a controversial project, with so little prospect of success, contrary to the social and environmental credentials they claim for their brand.

If ever there was a time for management to cut their losses on this project, it is now.”

Kirby Hill RAMS has been fighting against applications for motorway services on the site for almost a quarter of a century, after the first plans were put forward in 1996. HBC said the current application would cause substantial harm to the surrounding countryside and environment of the village, as well as to the economy of neighbouring Boroughbridge.

Kirby Hill Residents Against Motorway Services protested against the proposals by Applegreen, which was rejected in 2019

RAMS chairman Gareth Owens said:

“Kirby Hill is Britain’s most controversial proposed MSA site for a good reason: it is a completely inappropriate location for this type of development, which would cause substantial harm.For 24 years, decision-makers in the planning system and in the courts have agreed with us… We feel very strongly that the company should now respect Harrogate Borough Council’s decision.”

Eugene Moore, Applegreen’s chief development director, said:

“Applegreen has lodged an appeal with the Planning Inspectorate to consider the planning decision for the Vale of York motorway service area proposals. We don’t believe it is appropriate to comment on the process further until the appeal has been heard.”