Expansion of brewery

Further to the takeover of Walsall's Highgate Brewery by Global Star (Express & Star, July 3), any news of a more secure future for brewing on this historic site and for those who work there is of course welcome, and you have quoted the local MP and local councillors as saying as much.

But what they fail to point out is that the site is tightly hedged round by residential streets, and that even the present owners' previous more modest ambitions to expand and intensify production brought them into conflict with near neighbours, rightly concerned to safeguard the peaceful enjoyment of their homes.

So when I read that the new owners plan to invest three million pounds and double production, then alarm bells start to ring. What extensions or changes are proposed for the money?

What are the implications for activity on site, and traffic in residential streets? And what would be the overall impact on people living close by?

But most of all, if if does come to a planning argument, how assertive will Walsall Council be in insisting that the developers have due regard for their neighbours?

Sadly, previous experience in adjoining areas of Highgate and Gorway, relating to the university's expansion plans, does not inspire confidence.

As a previous ward councillor, I, along with many local residents, found that the council, faced with over-intensive development of the Gorway Campus, caved in meekly to the developer's demands. The residents now pay the price.

Councillors, as and when the brewery takeover turns out to be another cuckoo in the nest, and the planning applications come in, please think before you vote - the people who elect you depend on you to get it right.

Richard Worrall, Walsall.