THE CONTROVERSIAL demolition of some stables to make way for a new residential development is due for debate next week.
A new development consisting of five homes in place of existing livery and storage on land south of Rowley Lane, in Wexham, will be discussed during a South Buckinghamshire Area Planning Committee, on Tuesday, October 27.
The proposal, put forward by Daniel Family Homes, has been met with strong opposition from Wexham Parish Council and 17 neighbours.
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The applicant is seeking conditional permission to tear down the existing structures and in their place erect five new properties, including a pair of semi-detached homes (plots 1 to 4).
Each property will have a garden and shed, and two parking spaces.
The application also involves widening the existing access road to allow for two-way traffic flows.
All new properties are described as “low level”, single-storey buildings with flat roofs.
Natural England has raised concerns about the impact on Burnham Beeches Special Area of Conservation (SAC) and mitigation measures by way of financial contribution will be necessary to preserve its integrity.
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The site is surrounded by open fields. Nearby horse paddocks and bridleways will be “unaffected” by the build, according to council documents.
A previous application for four residential properties was refused in 2016, as was an application for just two in the same year.
However, a successful appeal granted two detached properties to be built on site.
Under this new proposal, the two semis will now be built instead of the two detached.
“It is acknowledged these buildings would now operate as four dwellings as opposed to two… the two buildings that would house units 1 to 4 would have exactly the same amount of physical impact on the openness of the Green Belt as that of the previously approved scheme,” states the report.
Letters of objection to the scheme cite loss of privacy, “potential noise and smell”, ‘inappropriate and poor design’, security risks to existing properties, hedgerow damage, and impact on wildlife.
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