Fife residents accused of a “smear campaign” say they are just trying to protect their hamlet from being “trampled” by a developer.
Family-run developer Premier Homes Scotland is building eight new homes in Pattiesmuir, a tiny settlement west of Rosyth.
Residents who opposed the homes accuse the company of riding “roughshod” over the conditions attached to its planning permission for the housing.
But the company has hit back, denying the allegation and accusing angry neighbours of running a “calculated smear campaign” against the company.
What are the residents’ claims?
I went to Pattiesmuir to meet the residents and discuss their concerns.
Before setting off I invited someone from Premier Homes to attend but they declined.
The company’s Carol Williams said she had previously encountered a “mob”.
She sent me a statement instead.
Carol maintains Premier Homes has fulfilled all planning conditions laid down by Fife Council.
She adds: “We are currently the target of a calculated smear campaign by local residents of Pattiesmuir who are trying to do everything possible to stop this development happening.”
Meeting the ‘mob’
So how did I get on when I met the “mob”?
Sitting under a pagoda, seven of the residents set out their concerns.
Geoff says: “Here we are in a conservation area. I can’t cut down a tree in my garden without asking Fife Council for permission.
“And yet we’ve got this developer riding roughshod over seemingly everything.”
The residents say they are concerned about loss of natural habitat and impact of heavy vehicles thundering past centuries old homes which have no foundations.
They showed me video footage of a digger removing undergrowth next to a neighbour’s house.
Lyndsy Adam says: “They just got the excavator and ripped it out, destroying a hedgehog house, exposing a blue tit nest, destroying a pigeon’s nest, and opening up an area of his property to the building site which had previously been shielded from it.”
And the residents say sparks literally flew when the bulldozers moved in.
“On day one they ripped up the electricity cable,” says Geoff Cartwright.
Fife hamlet’s historic past
Residents are also concerned about the impact of inappropriate development on such a historic area.
The house we are sitting outside was once home to the grandfather of Fife’s most famous philanthropist, Andrew Carnegie.
On top of the ground clearing and disturbance, residents say once finished the scale of the homes will be out of character with the rest of the settlement – a conservation area.
“We are not against development of the hamlet in an appropriate way,” says Lyndsy.
Geoff adds: “The conditions were laid out and we accept that. Are we supposed to roll over and let the developers ride roughshod over that?
“We’ve got some collective spirit here and we love where we live. We love the environment we live in and we do not want to see it trampled.”
Residents firmly deny any suggestions of a “smear campaign” or “mob” mentality.
What about the power cable?
Scottish Power confirmed four properties lost power for around three hours after a contractor damaged a “low voltage cable”.
“The Health and Safety Executive are happy with our report of the incident and have taken no further action,” says Carol from Premier Homes Scotland.
“We have repeatedly asked the residents to tell us which planning conditions they believe we are breaching – nothing has been forthcoming.
“We have satisfied all planning conditions.”
On the issue of the heavy vehicles, Carol says access for heavy vehicles is not through the hamlet.
She conceded, however, there may be “the odd occasion where mistakes are made”.
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