Care home plan is deferred again
For the second time in under a month, Scarborough Council has deferred its decision on an application seeking to convert a former care homeintoresidentialproperties.
Scarborough Council’s Planning and Development Committee decided at its meeting to defer decisionmaking on the proposed conversion of the former Elsinor care home at 5-6 Esplanade Gardens, Scarborough.
The deferral was due to a perceived lack of clarity regarding rubbish collection and confusion about the number of proposed bedrooms in the property.
There was also uncertainty as to whether some of the flats would be for residential or holiday use.
The committee originally decided to defer the decision at its meeting in July as a result of concerns raised by councillors about rubbish disposal and collection, as well as the size and standards of the proposed accommodation.
Speaking at the meeting,
Cllr Jane Mortimer said: “There is a huge need for flats and starter homes, it is how we organise the collection and disposal of waste and sort that out.”
She added: “Can we put this on deferral again just to get back to the agent to see if there is any way they can manage another entry to the rear of the property, so residents can get rid of their own rubbish?”
Councillors had conducted a site visit the week before the most recent meeting to examine the outside of the property in person.
Though the issues regarding size and standards had been resolved by the applicant, Sure Start Property Solutions Ltd, councillors were still not happy with the proposed rubbish removal policy.
Members also highlighted that the number of bedrooms in some of the proposed flats had been “misnumbered” on the application, with some one-bedroom properties labelled as having two bedrooms.
Additionally, it emerged during the meeting that if approved, the applicant was considering using some of the apartments as holiday lets although this was not mentioned in the application.
The major concern for councillors remained the collection of refuse from the property and potential litter ending up on the streets.