A LEADING campaigner fighting house building on Halesowen’s greenbelt met developers this week urging them to make their plans public.

Halesowen North councillor Karen Shakespeare accused St Modwen of engaging in “secret” talks in a bid to win over interested groups.

She said: “I pushed for them to put their plans out in the public arena rather than chipping away at small groups, keeping everyone else out of the loop.

“We cannot have these secret meetings.”

The News reported last week that St Modwen had met with the Friends of Leasowes who oppose plans to build on a field around Firtree Farm on the Coombeswood Green Wedge.

But the Friends of Coombeswood Wedge have declined to comment on the meetings they have had with the developer although it is understood the company would relinquish its hold on the remainder of the wedge if there was no opposition to houses being built on the field.

No plans have yet been submitted and St Modwen’s senior development surveyor Ian Romano has refused to give any details.

Cllr Shakespeare said he continued to remain tight-lipped when she met him on Monday to re-iterate her opposition to greenbelt development, especially as brownfield sites at Fairfield Road and the former Holt Farm School would satisfy housing needs.

“I don’t think we will ever see eye to eye. St Modwen is a big business at the end of the day. We’ve just got to keeping fighting to save our greenbelt for future generations,” she said, adding:

 “I am hoping with the next couple of months we will get something in the public domain for people to see what they are considering and end the rumours.”

Almost 100 people have signed her online petition opposing building on the wedge at www.halesowennorth.com

Halesowen North UKIP councillor Stuart Henley is also circulating a petition.