Committee members of Marple Civic Society had a meeting this week with senior managers of Marple Sixth Form College to discuss the college’s development plans following the withdrawal in 2013 of the proposal to build a supermarket on the Hibbert Lane site.
The college representatives explained the considerable financial pressures they face due to the age and condition of the college buildings, high maintenance costs and cuts in government funding over the last five years.
The college is in discussion with a planning consultant to develop a proposal to build houses on the Hibbert Lane site and to use the capital raised from this scheme to redevelop the facilities on the Buxton Lane site; this development is expected to be modified and smaller in scale than the previous plan. Sports facilities will be provided as part of the development on Buxton Lane.
The Society’s interest is in the impact on the community of the college’s proposed development work and, while many individual members are interested in the educational development, the Society would not seek to discuss that except in so far as it affects other community issues.
It was agreed at the meeting that the College and Marple Civic
Society have a significant overlap of interest in the traffic and 'public realm' issues connected with the development of possible housing in Hibbert Lane, the college in Buxton Lane and the possible development of a supermarket in Trinity Street. All these will have a big impact on the local community. It was agreed that further discussions will be held when either party has any issue of community significance to explore.
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