Tree House owner wins planning row
BUSINESS OWNER IN DISPUTE WITH COUNCIL
A BAR in Hessle is celebrating after it has been told an external facelift can stay in place after council planners called for its removal.
The owners of The Tree House bar faced a £20,000 bill to restore the frontage of the popular bar - despite the large traditional bay windows being replaced with bi-folding doors by previous owners of the building nearly four years ago.
The work was carried out to the bar without planning permission although a previous consent was in place for a different door design.
As a result, East Riding Council started enforcement action over the issue last summer.
But an independent planning inspector has now upheld an appeal by the bar’s owner against the council’s enforcement notice.
The Tree House owner Charlie Hackford said: “We are delighted that the appeal has been successful and that common sense prevails. The outpouring of support from customers to our appeal has been overwhelming.
“The bi-fold doors are a huge part of our business model and allow us to integrate the inside and outside giving a really good vibe throughout.
“We have invested thousands of pounds in this property and have had such great support from customers from the moment we opened.
“It is our intention to remain in Hessle for many years to come but if we had lost the appeal and had been forced to replace the doors then I think we would have struggled to survive.
“The current pandemic is hitting us hard like so many businesses and a negative outcome would have been the final nail in the coffin.”
After visiting Hessle to see the site for himself, planning inspector Roy Merrett said he did not believe the current doors spoiled the character of the Hessle Conservation Area.
He also pointed out that while several nearby buildings had retained traditional timber features such as sash windows, many others now featured large glazed frontages.
Mr Merrett said: “It would appear that at ground level, neither curved bay windows nor small paned widows with glazing bars are a prevalent building feature along The Weir.
“I consider that their loss, in this case, would not result in harm to the street scene, or therefore to the character and appearance of the wider Conservation Area.”
He claimed the council’s previous approval for the use of bi-folding doors at the property undermined its case and described the initial design’s attempt re-create the curves of the bay windows as “somewhat contrived”.
He added: “By contrast, the design and positioning of the implemented bi-folding doors gives the impression of a more genuine solution while respecting the overall symmetry of the front elevation and facilitating the circulation of clientele around the premises.
“Drawing all of the above findings together, including the previous use
of modern materials and the questionable significance of the previous design, I conclude that the development does not result in harm to its surroundings or to the special interest of the Conservation Area.
“Rather it results in a neutral effect on the character and appearance of the Conservation Area as a whole, which accordingly would be preserved. To say otherwise would, in my view, be going too far in this particular case.”
Planning agent John Benson, who represted Mr Hackford, said: “‘It was disappointing that the council decided to take this course of action given the doors had been in situ for three years and eleven months and there had been no public outcry against the development.”