Ten new flats proposed for Lymington Road in Highcliffe
TEN new flats and changes to a shop front are planned at a site in Lymington Road, Highcliffe.
The extra homes will be built by an extension of the first, second and third floors together with the demolition of a rear single storey outbuilding and a two-storey building, creating a mews-style development to the rear, writes Trevor Bevins of the Local Democracy Reporting Service.
The application site, comprising numbers 288-292, includes the Oakhaven hospice trust charity shop, a hairdressers and an office let to a chiropodist.
The two retail units will be combined under the proposals to create a larger single unit with a visualisation of the proposal showing the hospice shop as a larger unit.
If approved by BCP Council, the redesigned building would have three flats on the ground floor, two on the first and second floors, one at the third floor level and two maisonettes at the first and second floor, with the retention of an existing flat on the first floor.
A previous application was granted in September 2014 for seven new homes on the site, but never came to fruition.
The current proposal includes reducing the 10 car parking spaces to the rear of the site down to four and increasing cycle spaces from five to 21 with two disability parking spots and one for a motorcycle.
If approved the site will have five one-bed flats or maisonettes and five two-bed. Forty square metres of shop space would be lost as a result of the development leaving 97 square metres in total.
The application said similar applications have been allowed in the area in the past and the new one was similar to that which won planning consent in 2014.
A report to BCP planners said: “The application proposals are informed by an understanding and appreciation of the surrounding area. The proposals respond positively to their immediate context, and have been designed to be in keeping in scale and massing.
"The size and position of the development would not adversely impact upon the street scene of Lymington Road.
“The proposals should contribute positively to the economic and social wellbeing of the community, raise design standards and respect the established character of the area and the living conditions of neighbouring properties."
