CONTROVERSIAL plans to build a block of modern flats in a Malvern Conservation Area have been overwhelmingly refused by councillors because the development would ‘fail to preserve the area’s character’.
The plans by applicant Jonathan Roe centred on building seven new apartments, an access road, car parking and landscaping on land on Como Road – close to South Worcestershire College and Malvern Cube.
It also included plans to demolish a home on the road known as ‘Northcot’ inorder for the new building to be put into place.
But the plans drew plenty of criticism in the consultation period with residents stating the development was not right for the area and was too big.
Organisations such as Malvern Town Council and Malvern Civic Society also addressed their concerns with the town council saying the plans ‘remained unsympathetic within a conservation area and that the plans should be reconsidered’.
A Malvern Hills District Council Southern Area Development Management meeting, held earlier this month, saw twelve councillors refuse the application with just one approving it.
A decision notice from the district council, published after the meeting, said: “The proposed development by reason of its design and scale would fail to preserve or enhance the character and appearance of the surrounding Great Malvern Conservation Area.”
The applicant said the site was a ‘sustainable’ location for residential development. The Observer approached the applicant’s client BPL Architects who declined to comment about the refusal. It is not yet known whether they will launch an appeal.
