Last of remaining High Street farms is sold

THE last of Portishead's remaining High Street farms has been sold at auction - to a local businessman.

The farm and agricultural buildings at the rear of 117 High Street have been snapped up by Ian Mathison, managing director of IC Mathison heating and plumbing.

Mr Mathison's business, which has been operating in the town for 30 years, is already located in buildings at the front of the site.

Mr Mathison said he had no firm plans for the site at the moment, but eventually hoped to restore the farm buildings to their former glory.

Mr Mathison said: "We have no definite plans for the site at the moment and I don't see us developing housing in the short term.

"We will tidy up the site and make it presentable and then we will analyse what we are going to do with it.

"However, subject to permission from the planning authority I would like to eventually restore the barns to their former glory.

"I only acquired the land just over a week ago and one of the reasons for this is my business is located at the front of this site and I did not want a developer running amok in there.

"The public can be reassured that any development will be sympathetic and in line with planning requirements."

The site was previously owned by Bristol City Council.

The city council owned a number of High Street farms in Portishead, but over the last two years has been selling them off.

The land used to be a working farm and it is understood the farmer still lives in the large farmhouse - which was not included in the sale -  on the site.

The site, which is approximately 0.6 of an acre, comprises of a range of one and two storey stone barns and stables and is already earmarked within the North Somerset Local Plan for housing.

Portishead had a number of farms along the High Street but over the years they have been sold off for development.

Court Farm, which includes Springfield Farm and an area of amenity land, was sold last year to a private individual for £895,000 despite a public campaign to save it and turn it into a community farm and heritage centre.

Another farm on the High Street - Grange Farm - has also been sold off and plans put forward to build 58 retirement apartments on the site.

The farm was part of The Grange and used to be the manor house to North Weston.

Both the town council and local community groups have fought to save the farms from being sold off and developed, without much success.

The town council set up a heritage working party to investigate which buildings in Portishead needed to be listed to protect them for future generations.

Town councillor David Pasley, who set up the working group, said: " I am pleased the site has been sold to a local person rather than a faceless developer.

"It is encouraging to hear that the  owner plans to restore the barns.

"I hope the site as a whole will be treated with respect and its original features retained as much as possible."