THE possibilities for a piece of scrubland dubbed an 'eyesore' by local residents were discussed by councillors at a meeting of Calstock Parish Council last week.

The council received a letter from Devon and Cornwall Housing (DCH), which owns the piece of land off Russell Close and Rodda Close in Gunnislake, asking for thoughts on what could be done with the area.

The letter stated that DCH was reviewing land holdings with a view to determining potential uses for land which had no current defined/active use.

The letter stated: 'As a leading provider of affordable housing in Cornwall, one option could be to use the land (or part of) to provide new affordable housing for local people if there is a need and support for such.

'However, there may be other uses the parish council can think of for the land that would benefit the village and local community.'

At the meeting, parish clerk Sue Lemon said that Cllr Dougal McLachlan — who wasn't present at the meeting at that time — had previously said that the piece of land had come up for discussion before and that the drainage on it was a 'nightmare' and warned that they 'shouldn't touch it with a barge pole'.

Cllr Dorothy Kirk said: 'But it would be nice to have some amenity land in this day and age of cramming houses in.'

Cllr Dick Hoile suggested the land could be turned into a park for local residents.

Cllr Kirk said: 'There's 100ft of rubble between the surface and bedrock and the whole area is still under close observation. The residents complain that it is an eyesore because of fly tipping and skips left there.

'I'm sure the residents would appreciate if it was a well kept area instead.'

Cllr Hoile had concerns about the council owning the area and suggested that the land could be used but the council did not have to own it to do so.

It was decided that the clerk would arrange a meeting with DCH to discuss what could and could not be done with the land.