®Planning appeal decision
36, 38 and 40 Rowden Road, Epsom, KT19 9PW
Planning appeal 3280972 at 36, 38 and 40 Rowden Road, Epsom, KT19 9PW (Epsom and Ewell Borough Council) was dismissed on 14 July 2022 by Inspector Buchanan R, by written representations. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: the effect of the proposed block of flats on the character and appearance of the area.
demolition of Nos 36, 38 and 40 Rowden Way, and garage block at Crane Court, and the erection of 12no new dwellings (including 8no 1 bedroom flats, 2no 2 bedroom flats, and 2no 3 bedroom houses), including associated landscaping, access and parking
- Authority
- Epsom and Ewell Borough Council
- Appeal type
- major · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Written Representations
- Development
- residential · Major dwellings
- Inspector
- Buchanan R
- Postcode
- KT19 9PW
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- the effect of the proposed block of flats on the character and appearance of the area
- the effect of the proposed block of flats on the living conditions of the existing occupiers of Nos 34 and 42 Rowden Road, having particular regard to outlook and privacy, and the existing occupiers of Nos 14 and 16 Bourne Way, with particular regard to privacy
What decided it
The significant harm to character and appearance and to neighbouring living conditions, when weighed against the moderate housing benefits in the context of the tilted balance, demonstrably outweighed the benefits and meant the presumption in favour of sustainable development did not apply.
The moderate weight of housing benefits and social, economic and environmental benefits of 12 dwellings on a sustainably located site was substantially outweighed by the substantial weight given to the conflicts with development plan policies DM9 and DM10 regarding character, appearance and neighbouring amenity, such that the adverse impacts significantly and demonstrably outweighed the benefits when assessed against the Framework as a whole.
What the Inspector cited
- Development plan policies
- Policy DM9Policy DM10
- National Planning Policy Framework
- Paragraph 11Paragraph 8
How the Inspector dealt with each one is set out in the app, in order: the development plan, national policy, housing land supply, other considerations and the planning balance, beside the letter.
See how each was appliedThe decision letter
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With an account
What an account adds to this decision
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The main issues, what decided it, the planning balance and the policies and judgments listed as cited are read from the published letter by Town Planner Pro and are our summary, not the Inspector’s words; the letter itself is the record. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Research, not advice.