PLANNERS set to consider the future of Grove Farm have received 89 formal objections from angry members of the public.

The 89 complaints include one on behalf of the Grove Farm Residents Voice protest group which has 340 members.

There are 88 other objections from members of the public. However, there have been nine messages of support submitted to the city council.

The controversial application to turn 19 hectares of green field on the outskirts of St John's into a business park has provoked a storm of protest in the area.

The city council is due to consider a development brief on Thursday.

This spells out what a potential application would have to include to ensure it meets council planning guidelines.

If this is established, the developer - Spen Hill Developers Ltd - can apply for planning permission.

Plans have been lodged to concrete over most of the site for 27 office blocks and industrial units.

It would provide employment for 3,000 workers on the site as well as 900 temporary construction jobs for workers involved in its

creation.

It would also create 1,800 parking spaces, a public pathway and a cycle lane.

The 19-hectare Grove Farm would lose 11 hectares of greenery under the proposal.

The site - based off Meadowbank Drive - has been earmarked as employment land by the city council.

Grove Farm Residents Voice spokeswoman Leesa Laird said: "The development brief is something we have been looking at for 12 months.

"It is not foolproof and has a lot of grey areas. We feel the whole thing is very frustrating.

"The 89 objections to this document is nothing compared to the 161 objections about the actual plans I dropped off last week."

The vast majority of complaints relate to the traffic implications a business park would have on St John's.

There is also concern about security and pollution, as well as ecological issues.

Resident John Isherwood, who lives on Westley Close, said: "What I want answered is the question of how traffic needs will be met.

"If these plans get the approval it could mean 3,000 workers. Anyone who knows the area would agree there is just not the infrastructure here for it."

Planning officers have recommended the development brief be approved.