Sir – We are fortunate to have the Craven Herald as a forum through which the electors may communicate with the elected.

We recently, through your paper, learned of discussions between the town council and a local developer of a plan to build 55 houses on land between Grassington Road roundabout and the Roman Road (White Hills Lane).

This land is part of the Tarn Moor Estate which was left to the people of Skipton and is administrated by the trustees of the estate.

I, along with many others, was invited to attend a consultation at the Tarn House Hotel – the purpose of which was to gather information, by the developer, of what would be acceptable to local residents.

I learned that the price of the land would be governed by the number of properties for which planning consent was obtained.

This seems a rather cosy arrangement between the trustees and developer.

It is surely incumbent on the part of the trustees to maximise the result, should a sale occur, to the estate funds.

In the mid 1990s, a small parcel of land (circa 1.02 acres) was sold at auction for £293,000. A plot cost of circa £55,000 for the five houses thereon.

The land in question is approximately six times larger and suggests to me that 30 houses would be more appropriate, if, sadly, this land is to be sold. The price would be considerably higher than the £1.65 million if the 1993 prices were obtained.

It would be nice to be told by the trustees how such a fortune would be applied to the benefit of the owners – the people of Skipton.

It is understood that 40 per cent of the properties on the site would be “affordable”, whatever that may mean.

Whilst it is a matter for Craven District Council, is there an intention to extend the town boundary to the by-pass?

One should not forget the criticism levelled at the council when land was sold to Skipton Building Society for their new headquarters, at what some considered to be a knock-down price.

The land above the society’s building is much bigger than the land in question and should be developed before other land is so categorised. It would be a useful land bank for the future.

R Wilcock, Skipton