GREEN-fingered residents whose efforts to establish a community flower bed were destroyed by a raging businessman have rallied round to recreate the raised planter.
In August, wind turbine company director Mike Hodgson, 54, was filmed apparently pulling out the colourful herbs and flowers less than 24 hours after the raised bed had been tenderly planted by volunteers.
Mr Hodgson, 53, and his partner Shirin Poostchi, 55, who have been accused of terrorising locals with anti-social behaviour, allegedly took power tools and crowbars to destroy the bed of blooms next to his luxury home.
The pair could be seen in footage climbing onto the soil and pulling out the plants that had been put in place. Green energy boss Mr Hodgson was seen ripping out all the insect friendly plants before trying to cut up the wooden planter with an angle grinder.
Residents then staged a sit-in to protect the flower bed during the turf war in the heart of the countryside village of Gwaenysgor, North Wales.
Now the bed has been rebuilt and replanted – while Mr Hodgson and Ms Poostchi havent been seen in recent weeks.
In a fit of rage over the denials of his planning applications, Mike Hodgson apparently destroyed a community flowerbed in Gwaenysgor, Wales
The raised bed had been planted by local residents just 24 hours before Hodgson allegedly destroyed it
Residents of Gwaenysgor were quick to fix the floral centrepiece of their community
Gwaenysgor resident Andy Clarke, 58, who was among residents who replanted the bed last weekend, said: This weekend is a celebration of our historic church, one of the oldest in Wales and it was even mentioned in the Doomsday Book.
With so many people attending from outside the village, we wanted to show Gwaenysgor at its best. The herb garden has been restored and looks beautiful, but what is even more incredible to see is the community spirit.
The sad incident a few weeks ago has really brought people together, so I hope some good will have come from such a sad event.
Locals said there had been an ongoing planning dispute with wind turbine company boss Mr Hodgson after he moved into the countryside village of Gwaenysgor, North Wales, around 10 years ago.
The incident in August marked a low point in a long running feud between Mr Hodgson, Ms Poostchi and a number of residents in the Flintshire village.
There were allegations of verbal abuse, vandalising of cars and other vehicles being covered in stale bread, chip fat and lipstick when they had been parked close to Mr Hodgsons home.
During the confrontation in which the planter was destroyed, two police cars containing four officers raced to the scene and separated the opposing factions amid fears it could come to blows over the biodiversity project.
It was one of six planned planters to be set up on odd areas of unkempt, unadopted ground around the village and it was constructed with the help of the local conservation group as part of a Britain in Bloom bid.
Mr Hodgson, who worked for 20 years in the oil and gas industries, is understood to have become increasingly incensed over three failed planning applications he had made for his £500,000, four bedroom home at the end of Lon Capel street.
On each occasion there has been vociferous opposition from locals opposed to his attempt to build a home office and gym in his garden and create off street parking for himself on land which they say he does not own.
The rebuilt flower bed in Gwaenysgor which was the centre of the scandal
Local residents within the Welsh village pooled together to quickly fix the destroyed bed
Having been destroyed with power tools and crowbars, the flowerbed is now restored to its former glory
In August, Mr Hodgson hit back and told MailOnline the flowerbed violated his business plans and environmental ethos, and said it follows opposition to his attempt to install a home office and gym.
He said: We acknowledge that a recent incident involving the removal of a planter has attracted attention. I would like to address the situation directly and provide some context as the video provided a one-sided view.
This matter stems from a long-standing conflict within the community. The planter encroaches on the property where we conduct our business and was erected without planning permission in a conservation area.
Our company is deeply committed to recycling and green energy, and we have always strived to maintain our premises in a manner consistent with these values.
Unfortunately, the planter in question includes materials that are not environmentally friendly, such as plastic and concrete, which conflicts with our sustainability efforts.
We requested the individuals responsible for the planter to move it and provided them with a 24-hour window to do so. When this was not accomplished, we proceeded to remove the planter ourselves.