Pavement outside Starbucks, 5-10 Wimbledon Hill Road, London, SW19 7NS

the installation of "Pulse Smart Hub" with integrated digital screens

Authority: London Borough of Merton
Appeal type: minor · Planning Appeal
Procedure: Written Representations
Development: utilities-energy · Other minor developments
Inspector: Courtney T

Main issues, as the Inspector framed them

the effect of the development on the character and appearance of the area
the effect of the development on highway safety
the effect of the development on trees
the effect of the proposed advertisement on amenity
the effect of the proposed advertisement on public safety

What decided it

The tangible and enduring harm to character and appearance, pedestrian movement, accessibility and safety in a constrained street environment with no demonstrated local need for the proposed facilities outweighed the claimed technological and community benefits.

The limited weight attached to the claimed public benefits would not outweigh the considerable weight attached to the harm arising from the proposal to character and appearance, highway safety, pedestrian movement and amenity.

Plan policies cited: Policy DM D1, Policy DM D2, Policy DM O2, Policy DM D5, Policy D8 of the London Plan (2021), Policy G7 of the London Plan

Read the decision letter on the Inspectorate’s site

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.

What an account adds

Draw a red line around your site and the appraisal follows.

Heritage. Listed buildings by grade and distance, conservation areas, scheduled monuments, registered parks and gardens, heritage at risk.
Landscape and environment. Green belt, national parks and national landscapes, SSSIs, ancient woodland, SPA, SAC and Ramsar sites, nutrient catchments.
Flooding. Flood zones 2 and 3, surface water, and both again with climate change.
Transport. The 800 metre station catchment and service frequency, bus stops with their weekday frequency, the cycle network, and the Framework’s transport tests measured for the site.

Then the development plan position, the housing land supply as an Inspector last accepted it, and every appeal decided around the site with its letter.

Every English appeal since 2016, with the letter behind it wherever the Inspectorate published one. Searched by meaning as well as by words, with the key case law counted live across the letters.

Casework that chases the deadlines. Applications, appeals and conditions with their statutory dates.

The judgement stays yours. The tool gathers the material and dates it.