Dad ‘vandalised’ historic house
DEVELOPER FINED THOUSANDS AFTER ‘RENOVATING’ LISTED BUILDING TO CREATE FAMILY HOME
A DAD who hoped to transform a historic listed building into a home for his family has been fined thousands of pounds after ‘vandalising’ the property through demolition works.
A council says property developer Laurence Daw carried out ‘reckless vandalism’ when he knocked down a stairwell, cheese room and end gable at Aston Park House, in Cheshire.
The Grade II*-listed building, which is so old it was listed in the Domesday Book, was in a derelict state when Dr Daw bought it at auction for £320,000 back in 2016.
He is working to transform the building into a home for his family and has ploughed £480,000 into renovation and remedial works.
But council officials took him to court when they discovered that some of the work was not carried out in accordance with regulations.
After being fined for the offences, Mr Daw told the M.E.N: “I would warn anybody thinking of buying a listed property not to bother.”
The 32-year-old has slammed ‘heavy handed’ council officials for taking the case to court, claiming there was no proof that he wilfully caused reckless damage to the house.
Mr Daw’s problems with the council began when he replaced sash windows with double glazing – this led to an 18-month court battle, he says.
A judge at South Cheshire Magistrates Court has now ordered Mr Daw to pay a £2,250 fine, £65,000 court costs and carry out 250 hours of unpaid community work after he admitted offences under the Building Act following a prosecution by Cheshire East Council.
The authority says it is now working with Historic England to try to rectify the damage caused by the unauthorised works.
“Mr Daw’s actions with this property amounted to reckless vandalism,” Coun Ainsley Arnold said.
While Charles Smith, of Historic England added: “We hope that this sad episode will remind other owners of the need to treat listed buildings with respect and care.”
The council says Mr Daw breached planning regulations when he demolished a two-storey historic cheese room and tradesman’s entrance, removed sash windows, gable coping stones, guttering, lime mortar pointing and part of a staircase. Floor tiles, door frames, window linings and architraves were also removed along with ceilings and soffits and an external boundary wall, while insulation spray foam was used on the fabric of the building, according to the council.
The authority has served notices for work to be rectified, but officials claim some aspects of the historic fabric of the building have been ‘permanently lost.’
However Mr Daw, who has previously owned property in Manchester’s Northern Quarter, says he has been ‘dismayed and disappointed’ at the accusation that he was responsible for ‘reckless vandalism.’
“At no point during the course of the proceedings was there any suggestion or indeed finding by the court of any wilful intent on my part to cause reckless damage,” he told the M.E.N.
Mr Daw, of Cheshire Estates, accepts that some works by third party contractors were ‘incorrect,’ but believes he had obtained appropriate consent at each stage.
“We got it for next to nothing because of the condition it was in,” he says.
“Despite indicating a willingness to work and liaise with the council at each step, I have instead faced a relentless progression of formality, enforcement, prosecution and court proceedings.
“My intention was never anything else but to create a safe and secure family home while undertaking to incur significant financial resources to restore a derelict and crumbling property.
“Whilst I fully respect the role that council planning officers undertake, what I have had to endure has been deeply unpleasant, a waste of taxpayer resources and entirely unnecessary.”