THE owner of a controversial tyre wall has been ordered to pay thousands in legal costs and fines – but the bales of tyres will stay standing.

A long-standing dispute over the structure between the council and businessman Patrick Moran, of Glazebrook Lane, has finally been settled, more than one year on from when the lengthy feud began.

Mr Moran has been ordered to shell out around £15,000 in fines and legal costs after the ongoing case finally came to a close following a two-day appeal at Chester Crown Court on Thursday and Friday.

But the ‘eyesore’ tyre wall will remain as the court heard Mr Moran had reduced the tyre wall in height at the ‘11th hour’ – around three weeks before the case was due to be heard in front of a judge.

The change in height means the structure now meets the ‘legal planning parameters’ of 1m, giving the council no option but to drop its case to order the removal of the tyres.

However, the council was still able to continue proceedings against Mr Moran for placing illegal advertisements on the site.

The long-running disagreement began when the council ordered Mr Moran to remove the wall after it was built between January 9 and 10, 2014.

Both parties refused to back down and the case was heard before two separate panel of magistrates last year, who sided with the council that the tyre wall and advertisements must be taken down.

Mr Moran decided to appeal against the decision after he was

n Continued on page 2

n unable to attend one of the hearings due to illness.

At the court on Friday, Mr Moran argued that he had the right to construct a hoarding fence around the perimeter of the site to prevent access to the building work as there was already planning permission granted on the land for work by the Environment Agency.

But the council said it was evident that the tyre wall was not performing the function of a hoarding.

Ruth Stockley, who was representing on behalf of the council, said: “We say it is not a hoarding on the defendant’s own evidence.

“He did not intend it to seek any purpose of screening for health and safety benefits to the building operation.

“He simply wanted to have some sort of perimeter fencing. It formed no purpose of a hoarding.”

The Recorder of Chester Judge Elgan Edwards dismissed Mr Moran’s two appeals for the two adverts as the tyre wall does not constitute a hoarding under the meaning of the legislation.

He also said he was ‘unimpressed’ with how Mr Moran had conducted himself in court after he continually refused to answer the questions directly.

Speaking after the case, Peter Astley, assistant director of regulation and protection, said the council will continue to ‘work hard to protect the town from unsightly and illegal developments’ and acknowledged frustrations that planning law makes if difficult to resolve issues quickly.

He said: “We are pleased that the court has vindicated the council and declared that the prosecution for illegal advertising should stand.

“The judge rejected the appeal and determined that Mr Moran was liable to pay a further substantial sum of costs, around £7,000, as well as the £4,000 fine and £1,000 costs levied by the magistrates last year.

“The council withdrew the notice served to remove the tyres as the height of the wall does now comply with planning legislation.

“It is disappointing that despite this long drawn out legal battle to protect the amenity of our town, the wall has been reduced at the 11th hour to meet these legal planning parameters rather than remove it completely, which we can do very little to change.”

The court also awarded further costs of £1,400 to the council on top of the £1,600 already awarded when the structure was initially deemed illegal in September last year by magistrates.