®Planning appeal decision
72a High Street, Battle, TN33 0AG
change of use from office to residential, proposing a new three-bed maisonette
- Authority
- Rother District Council
- Appeal type
- minor · Planning Appeal
- Procedure
- Written Representations
- Development
- residential · Minor Dwellings
- Inspector
- Buchanan R
Main issues, as the Inspector framed them
- Whether the proposal would result in the unjustified loss of a premises for employment or community use
What decided it
The appellant's failure to provide evidence of marketing, viability assessment, or lack of demand for employment or community use meant the proposal could not satisfy the development plan's requirements for justified loss of employment premises, and the presumption in favour of sustainable development did not apply.
The modest social, economic and environmental benefits of a single dwelling and housing delivery (limited weight) were significantly and demonstrably outweighed by the significant weight of the unjustified loss of employment premises and the conflict with local and national objectives for town centre vitality and economic growth, such that the presumption in favour of sustainable development did not apply.
Framework references: 11
Plan policies cited: Policy DEC3(i), Policy DCO1, Policy BA1(vi), Policy EC3(i), Policy HD8
The main issues and the deciding factor are read from the published letter by Town Planner Pro; the letter itself is the record. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Research, not advice.