Councillors have voted to reject a plan to demolish a three-storey home in Great Yarmouth and replace it with four one-bedroom flats in a four-storey building.
At a Wednesday meeting of Great Yarmouth Borough Council’s development control committee, councillors considered the plan, which was proposed to take place at 3 Burton Buildings on St Peter’s Road.
The committee had been due to vote on the bid in October but the decision was deferred for a site visit.
Some 10 objections to the plan were sent by residents, with concerns raised about over-development, anti-social behaviour, a loss of light and privacy, and increased pressure on parking.
At the meeting, the applicant’s agent assured the committee that the demolition would be carried out “brick by brick”.
Officers recommended that councillors approve the plans.
Councillor Tony Wright, Great Yarmouth’s former Labour MP, said: “In terms of the structural state of the building at the moment, it seems to be a fairly robust building, apart from not being looked after for a number of years.
“Why does it not lend itself to being reconfigured, in terms of using the shell that you’ve got?
“It may well be three flats instead of the four, but what about converting it into three.”
The agent replied that the floor area of the current building was not big enough to meet requirements, and nor would that idea be financially viable.
Mr Wright said he was also concerned that major structural changes would impact on the wider area’s Victorian drainage, and asked whether any surveying had been carried out.
The agent said none had been so far, but that would be a matter for building control, should the council approve the plans.
Conservative councillor Graham Carpenter pointed out that the floor area of the upper floors would be significantly larger than those of the old building, which he said could impose on neighbours and their gardens.
His Conservative colleague Leslie Mogford supported the application however, saying: “I think in the long term, it would be better for Yarmouth than the present building.”
Councillors then voted by majority against the proposal, following a motion from Mr Wright which argued the plan would constitute overdevelopment.
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