BATTLELINES are being drawn over plans to build a block of flats in the middle of a Teesside residential area.

Building firm George Wimpey North-East has applied to Stockton Borough Council for permission to demolish a house in South View, Eaglesciffe, and replace it with a three-storey block of flats.

But people living in South View, Yarm Road and Urlay Nook Road say the development would invade their privacy, create traffic problems and set a planning precedent for further high-density developments in the area.

Members of Eaglesciffe Parish Council have also joined the cause, agreeing unanimously at a recent meeting to pay for leaflets to be printed and delivered to all residents in the parish asking them to object to the borough council.

The parish council has contacted 3,500 households to encourage them to petition the town planners.

Banners and placards festoon gardens and trees surrounding the site.

John Tait, who lives in Yarm Road, said the proposed flats would dominate an area that is mainly made up of bungalows.

He said: "This site is surrounded by three roads and all the houses have gardens that back on to each other.

"If these flats are built that continuity would be ruined and people would feel their privacy had been invaded.

"The parish council has got behind us and has gone to the trouble of leafleting everyone to tell them to get their written applications in to Stockton council."

Joan Flint, who lives in The Crescent, said the three-storey building, which she described as monstrous, would block sunlight in her back garden.

She said: "If this goes ahead it is going to devalue houses everywhere in the parish. It is the tip of the iceberg. If we are not careful, Eaglescliffe is going to be ruined."

The deadline for objections to be sent to the council's planning department is Friday, February 16.

Developer George Wimpey North-East said it intends to build 24 two-bedroomed apartments in two blocks if the company is granted planning permission.