CLIFTONVILLE PLANNING APPEAL DISMISSED

An appeal against the council's decision to refuse planning permission for the demolition of a bungalow in Cliftonville and the erection of a five-bedroom house, has been dismissed.

The application, for a property in Holly Gardens, was submitted in January and refused by the council in March. The applicant appealed against that decision and, in response, the Planning Inspectorate has dismissed the appeal on the grounds of the harm that would be caused to the trees remaining on the site.

All the remaining trees on the site are now covered by a Tree Preservation Order. The report from the Planning Inspectorate considered the impact of the potential development on the trees, stating that it would be difficult to ensure adequate protection for some of the trees on the site and that the proposed building would be too close to the protected trees along the northern boundary of the site.

The Inspector also stated that he was in no doubt that the proposed dwelling would increase the amount of buildings visible and would have some adverse impact on the character of the area.

Cllr. John Kirby, Cabinet Member for Regulatory Services and Ramsgate Marina, said: "This case proved to be a highly controversial one earlier this year, when it became clear that trees at the site were being felled, after the council failed to confirm the Tree Preservation Order there. That's something we apologised for at the time and the orders are now firmly in place on all the remaining trees at the time. Fortunately, the character of this plot wasn't significantly affected by what happened and we're delighted that the Planning Inspectorate has backed our decision."