Overview
- Jean Harris, 79, says she will not sell about 385 square metres of her Allensmore garden that the council values at roughly £58,000 because the planned route would threaten a neighbouring oak and nearby wildlife.
- Herefordshire Council says most landowners have agreed terms or are close to agreement and that it has begun compulsory purchase processes where voluntary deals cannot be reached.
- The oak is described in reporting as about 500 years old and is linked to local bat and owl habitat, and residents say the road would place a 60mph carriageway yards from Harris’s bungalow, creating constant noise and vibration.
- The Southern Link Road was approved in 2015 as a roughly 3km link between the A465 and A49 and is budgeted at about £45m, but opponents note environmental assessment rules have tightened since the permission was granted and question the scheme’s congestion benefits.
- The compulsory purchase process will determine whether the council can secure holdouts or must alter plans, and the dispute highlights potential delays to the project timetable and the personal impact on Harris’s home and local wildlife.