PEEBLES Community Trust has described plans by Moorbrook Textiles Ltd to demolish a redundant mill and build new homes on the five-acre site as “inappropriate”.

As we revealed last week, Moorbrook has filed an application for outline planning for up to 70 houses at the former March Street Mill.

And it also wants to relocate the present allotments to the opposite end of the site.

According to the Community Trust, both proposals are likely to provoke strong local opposition.

The Mill closed in 2015 with the loss of 87 jobs, bringing an end to an industry that had occupied the site since 1884.

Some of the employees relocated along with the work when buyers were found for two of the businesses - Replin Fabrics was sold to AW Hainsworth in Leeds and Robert Noble to Magee Weaving in Donegal.

The Trust has stated that it wants to see an innovative mix of social housing, business and community facilities on the five-acre town centre site – in line with Scottish Borders Council’s site requirements listed in its draft Supplementary Guidance on Housing.

PCT chairman David Pye told us: “The outline planning application is inappropriate because Peebles cannot afford to forfeit this site to new homes on what was once one of the town’s major sources of employment without also zoning significant parts of the site for employment and community benefit.

“Services in the town are already over-stretched but we’re realistic enough to accept that there will be some new houses on that site.

"We think they should be the kind of homes people can afford, and we want to make sure that the site also offers the town jobs and amenities.”

The community-based Trust has engaged consultants and an architect to examine options for ensuring lasting community benefit from any development.

It was also looking into the purchase of the entire site in partnership with a developer who is sympathetic to the wider benefits that this site could yield.

A survey will be conducted into the Trust's own proposals for the site.

Mr Pye added: “We hope as many people as possible respond to our survey because we want to know the extent of local support for what we’re trying to do.

“We’re also encouraging people to respond to Moorbrook’s planning application by writing to the council, and we shall be doing so ourselves.

“Our Town Action Plan has spelt out how the social infrastructure, from education and health services to roads and jobs, has failed to keep pace with the dramatic increase in housing since the turn of the century.

"This is a unique, one-off, opportunity to start to tackle a problem that can only get worse with the requirement for Scottish Borders Council to incorporate an additional 916 new homes with in its current planning cycle – over and above allocations already adopted in the Local Development Plan.”

SBC’s draft Supplementary Guidance suggests that Peebles should have 100 of this additional allocation of houses, with up to 70 at the March Street Mill, where the council favours economic and community use alongside any new homes.

Peebles Community Trust coordinator Crick Carleton believes a predominantly housing-only development as outlined by the owners would adversely impact the local economy and sustainable development of the town.

Mr Carleton added: "It’s important to retain a significant proportion of this site for economic use.

"It has been in economic use for over 150 years, it’s been the largest provider of employment in Peebles for most of this time, and it is located near the town centre.

“It is the only such site, not only within the central core of the town, but within the development boundary of the town as a whole.”