Woman forced to erect ‘fortress’ after McDonald’s built next to her home

A furious woman says she had to take drastic action after McDonald’s built a huge ditch right next to her garden and ‘damaged her wall’.

The fast food chain took over a disused restaurant next door, and began work to erect the famous golden arches and a new car park.

But they departed from plans originally agreed and put a water tank so close to Rachel Laidler’s house she says it is not acceptable.

Rachel, 55, says the restaurant’s works in in Ilkley, West Yorkshire, came so close to her home’s boundary that they damaged a wall, so she took revenge by erecting a huge banner.

‘We’re not loving it,’ it reads, and though she insists she is ‘not a NIMBY’ and even enjoys the excited shouts of children getting their Happy Meals, she’s had enough.

The soft furnishings company boss says she was initially pleased when work began as the site had fallen into disrepair.

Contractors began working by the house, and Rachel and her husband Peter got on ‘well’ with them at first.

At the same time, Peter, 70, was going through ‘brutal’ treatment for throat cancer. When his health allowed it, Peter would occasionally help the builders, but the couple tried to get on with their lives without ‘looking over the fence the whole time.’

She said: ‘Then they came around and said, ‘We’re going to be digging a hole really quite close to your fence… It might be good if the dogs don’t go round there.’

‘And then we couldn’t believe it – it was literally the other side, and this hole just got deeper and deeper. It’s 1.9m from our bedroom wall and it’s over 4.5m deep.’

But things began to fall apart when they allegedly dug a huge ditch just 6 ft from the couple’s bedroom. Rachel claims the contractors damaged her wall after digging the hole thought to be for a water treatment tank.

She told the Daily Mail they have now had to build a ‘fortress’ of fencing to protect their property.

Rachel said she emailed Bradford Council about the tank which is now going through a retrospective planning application process but says she feels the council has ‘washed their hands’ of the issue.

A spokesperson from the US chain has since said it is ‘satisfied the correct procedures were followed’ – adding that it had ‘committed’ to repairing the fence.

But Rachel erected her banner when the restaurant opened, which read: ‘We’re not loving it – see the unrepaired damage they left behind their fence.’

The mum-of-four said: ‘People all over the country are having these issues.

‘Everybody says you shouldn’t take on McDonald’s but it’s just wrong what they are doing.

‘They just don’t care and yet they pretend to care. So that’s a conflict in their marketing.

‘I’ve got my 91-year-old dad living with us and he just can’t believe that anybody could be such a bad neighbour.

‘I’m just angry and I just can’t bear injustice. I’ll stand up for the people in the next development as well now that I see the bigger picture.

Rachel now fears similar issues will become more frequent if Labour presses ahead with their manifesto pledge to ‘overhaul’ the planning system.

Rachel said she fears planning disputes ‘might become more of a problem’ if the Labour government eases planning restrictions.

‘We’ve paid our council tax year in, year out for decades, and we are not being listened to or represented in any way,’ she added.

‘I wonder if it’s going on all over the country.’

A spokesperson from McDonald’s said: ‘As part of building our new McDonald’s Restaurant in Ilkley, we installed a water treatment tank, following a review of the local drainage infrastructure.

‘Once on site, it became clear that the water treatment tank could not be placed in the exact spot originally planned.

‘However, the main outlet pipe where the treated water leaves the site remains in the same location.

‘Relevant experts have assured us that the relocated tank does not impact neighbours or the surrounding area in any way, and we are working with the planning authority to make sure they are satisfied the correct procedures have been followed, and will follow any further steps they ask us to take.

‘We have made a commitment to repair the damaged fence and this week we contacted the neighbour to discuss next steps.’

A spokesperson for Bradford Council added: ‘The Council is aware of this issue and is in discussions with the owners’ representatives.

‘We have been advised that a retrospective Planning Application is being prepared and once received the Council will fully consider it, which will include the usual publicity to give residents a chance to make their comments.’

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