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Nov 23, 2021, 10 tweets

Protesters have camped out for seven months in this field in the latest twist in a 25-year battle to save a Manchester beauty spot manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-m…

Ryebank Fields in Chorlton has been the centre of a gruelling fight to stop a new development for a quarter of a century 🗓️

Campaigners have now built a camp with a tower, eco-house and a kitchen which has been manned round-the-clock since April 24 🕒

Manchester Metropolitan University (MMU) has owned the green space since the 1970s after it was gifted by the city council to be used as a sports field 🏉 🥎 🥍 🎾

The university has had plans to sell the land off for housing since 1996 and put it up for sale last year, despite an investigation uncovering dangerous materials

Eco-protesters are calling for university bosses to keep the area as a green space 🍀🌿🌳🌲

Paul Harnett, of the Friends of Ryebank Fields campaign group says “We started off with tents but are aware that tents are easily evicted, so about five months ago we built this tower. It’s a permanent structure and somebody has slept in here every single night.”

The Friends of Ryebank Fields claim the land is unsuitable for development after an investigation found dangerous materials such as asbestos

MMU state, however, "Ryebank Fields is an integral part of Manchester City Council’s housing plans for the Chorlton area”

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