The development at the ‘Pond House’ in Down Hall Road comes to the council committee on March 29th. The applicants want to demolish the existing house and replace it with a new house and 7 flats.
Roughly speaking, the pond would survive intact, the flats would be built to the north of the pond (where the house is now) and the new house would be near the corner of Down Hall Road and Lakeside (the direction from which passers-by can currently look at the pond)
You can download the council agenda here to read the full officers report. They are recommending that the scheme be approved. (Councillors , of course, don’t have to follow the recommendation if they take a different view on the planning issues)
The key paragraphs in the officers report seems to be:
Some of the residents responding to the application have commented that the existing dwelling on the site has some architectural merit and when seen with the existing pond they are an important local landmark, which adds some quality to the townscape.
It is accepted that the existing house, garden and pond is a long established land feature; however, the dwelling itself is not exceptional in its design and appearance when viewed in the wider street scene and its loss would not by itself be harmful to the character of the site and surrounding area. In addition the County Conservation Officer has been consulted and the building is not of listable quality.
The pond is to be retained within the new scheme, and its existing size and form will not be compromised by the new development and it will therefore be retained as a local landmark.
As always, we have to stay impartial before the meeting – but your comments are welcome here.