Roof terrace owners win fight to keep pergola at town flat
A couple who claimed they built a wooden canopy on their roof terrace to protect them from falling debris and neighbours throwing things at them have won their fight to keep it.
The owners of a flat on Haddington High Street lodged an appeal after they were refused permission for the pergola on their roof terrace and told to remove it.
Planning officers said the structure was permanent and had a negative impact on neighbours, however the owners claimed it was needed for their own protection when using the terrace.
At a meeting of East Lothian Council’s Local Review Body last Thursday, councillors backed the flat owners after visiting the terrace and seeing the dangers first hand.
Councillor Norman Hampshire, review body chairperson, said: “There is a building alongside this property that is in a very poor state of repair and there are visible signs of material falling from that building onto this area.
“The pergola will give the people on that terrace area added safety, if they are on there and are hit by falling material from adjacent buildings it could be really dangerous.”
And Councillor Donna Collins said slates hanging from the roof above their heads during the visit had been concerning. She noted: “The pergola is not only going to protect the applicants but also the building from any other debris falling. There were two sites hanging above our heads from the gutter when we were there, so I can see how dangerous it is.”
In their statement to East Lothian Council’s local review body, the flat owners said: “The installation of the pergola was undertaken as a measure to safeguard our health and well-being from potential hazards such as falling gutters, stones, or slates, or objects thrown by
The pergola will give the people on that terrace area added safety
neighbours. We have been subjected to harassment on multiple instances.
“Objects have been hurled from an elevated position. These incidents, along with other instances of physical and verbal harassment and aggression, have been duly reported to the police.”
The review body supported the owners’ appeal allowing the pergola to remain by two votes to one.