Ambitions for a modern house in Ludlow’s historic Corve Street blocked by planners

Just a day after the proposed ‘hobbit house’ on the Linney was refused planning permission, council planners have refused permission for a modern house at 81A Corve Street (15/01251/FUL). I said when the application was submitted:

The proposal is a perfect horror that will cause significant harm to the conservation area and the setting of historic buildings. It must be rejected… I cannot see any way that this application can be improved. The applicants need to go back to the drawing board.

My view has always been that the planners should throw the rulebook at this application and that, in effect, is what they did. The formal grounds for rejection are:

The plans and elevations submitted with the application, by virtue of the scale, massing and detailing of the resultant dwelling, would result in an uncompromising and alien feature when viewed from the street scene. The building does not pay regard to the smaller scale buildings sited on the same side of the road and it is considered that the dwelling would be considered harmful to the character of the wider conservation area, contrary to Core Strategy policies CS3, CS6, CS17, SAMDev policies MD2, MD12 and S10 and the guidance contained within the NPPF.

That’s pretty much the entire rulebook.

When commenting on this site before, I said:

I think this is a classic example where meaningful engagement with the community and local councillors might have brought forward a scheme that could be supported.

I think that is still the case.

The rejection does not mean that the site in unsuitable for development. A sensitive application on this site that pays regard to the historic context of lower Corve Street could well meet the approval of residents and planners. But a large suburban house as was proposed in this scheme should never be approved. This is a decision that Shropshire Council got right.

My objection to 81A Corve Street