Former Coop Store and Car Park, High Street , Gillingham , SP8 4AG

Planning appeal 3327824 at Former Coop Store and Car Park, High Street , Gillingham , SP8 4AG (Dorset) was allowed on 5 September 2024 by Inspector Fish A, by written representations. The main issue, as the Inspector framed it: Whether the appeal proposal would provide an appropriate level of affordable housing having particular regard to viability.

demolition of existing former Coop store and redevelopment of the site to provide 42 residential units, comprising 4 houses (C3), 30 apartments (C3) and 8 assisted living apartments (C2), 83sqm of commercial space (Class E), allotments, landscaping and other associated works

Authority: Dorset
Appeal type: major · Planning Appeal
Procedure: Written Representations
Development: residential · Major dwellings
Inspector: Fish A
Postcode: SP8 4AG

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

Whether the appeal proposal would provide an appropriate level of affordable housing having particular regard to viability
The effect of the appeal proposal on the vitality and viability of the town centre

What decided it

The site's ten-year vacancy, failed marketing efforts demonstrating the building is no longer suitable for reuse, and the proposed redevelopment's compliance with neighbourhood plan policy permitting residential-led mixed-use schemes on unsuitable buildings outweighed concerns about retail floorspace loss.

What the Inspector cited

Development plan policies: Policy 8Policy 12Policy 7Policy 13Policy 14Policy 15
National Planning Policy Framework: Paragraph 58Paragraph 66Paragraph 90Paragraph 56

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 applied

The decision letter

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What an account adds to this decision

14 other decided appeals within two kilometres of this site. In the app every dot opens its decision, and its letter wherever one was published, and you can draw your own site to see what has been decided around it.AllowedDismissedSplitThis 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.