Appeal hearing called over councillors’ refusal of housing plans

A developer has lodged an appeal after its plans to demolish a derelict council office block for housing were rejected.

Housing Plus Group had put forward proposals to knock down the former Bridgnorth District Council headquarters at Westgate and build 30 properties, but the scheme failed to win over Shropshire Council’s southern planning committee which refused permission earlier this year.

The housing association has now taken its case to the Planning Inspectorate in the hope of having the committee’s decision – which went against the advice of county planning officers – overturned.

The reasons for refusal given by the committee were that the development would have an unacceptable impact on road safety, and that the layout lacked cohesion and failed to reflect local context and character.

A hearing date has been set for next month, when Councillors Andy Boddington and Robert Tindall will be tasked with defending the committee’s refusal of the scheme to an inspector.

Councillor Boddington said: “The southern planning committee had no objection to redevelopment of the former Shropshire Council offices.

“We were happy for it to be used for housing. The problem lies in the proposed layout.

“The green space is adequate but it is shoved to the margins of the site on slopes alongside busy roads.

“Most of the green space is adjacent to the Wenlock Road, on a steep slope down to the road.

“Even with hedging or fencing this is not a useful or safe green space and certainly not an area for play.

“The small square green at the centre of the development is far too small and there will be no room to kick a ball around.”

Councillor Boddington said the road safety concerns centred on the seven properties proposed to have driveway access directly onto the busy Ludlow Road, particularly as these were proposed to have tandem parking.

Councillor Boddington said: “All these vehicles will reverse onto Ludlow Road.

“The committee did not think that would be safe. There will be too much traffic reversing onto the highway close to a junction.

“We should not be designing accidents into developments.”

The hearing is scheduled for November 25.

Councillor Boddington added: “This is an important site for Bridgnorth. It needs to be developed. But it needs the right scheme.

“The committee didn’t think that the current scheme would work for the town or residents.”

The Westgate building was the home of Bridgnorth District Council until Shropshire Council was formed in 2009, after which its use diminished and it eventually closed.

In 2015 Shropshire Council said it wanted to sell the building, leading to Bridgnorth Community Group bidding to have it listed as a community asset so that it could be retained for employment, recreation and community use – but the application was rejected.

It was later hoped that West Mercia Police officers could use the building as a base following the closure of Bridgnorth Police Station in 2018, but that plan was dropped when it was decided to re-open the police station.

Shropshire Council agreed the conditional sale of the site to South Staffordshire Housing Association (SSHA) in early 2020, to allow it to be developed for housing.

SSHA had intended to buy both the Westgate council offices and the police station to build 41 homes, but the number was reduced due to the police station no longer being included in the plans.

Housing Plus Group, part of SSHA, put forward proposals for 31 homes on the land, but revised the layout and removed one of the houses after the planning committee voted to defer a decision in October 2020, saying improvements needed to be made.

However when the plans went back before the committee in February 2021, members said they were still unimpressed and voted to refuse the application by six votes to one, with three abstentions.