Councillors asked to refuse plans for eight new apartments in Knaresborough due to ‘major issues’ with building

Councillors on the Harrogate and Knaresborough planning committee will meet on Tuesday (May 7) to have the final say on the scheme.

It would see a property on Stockwell Road demolished and replaced with a building that includes six two-bedroom and two one-bedroom apartments.

According to planning documents, the unlisted property is believed to be hundreds of years old and has “major issues” with subsidence, damp and dry rot which has left the upper floors uninhabitable.

It said the building is in such poor repair that refurbishment of the property would be unviable.

Owner Paul Franklin submitted a similar scheme for nine apartments at the site last year but it was withdrawn before a decision could be made.

The latest application is being considered by the planning committee after being ‘called in’ by division member Councillor Hannah Gostlow (Liberal Democrat – Knaresborough East).

In a report prepared for councillors, an officer gave several reasons for why they think it should be refused.

The report said: “Car parking, refuse store and cycle storage would be set between the build form and the public highway, presenting as a substantial area of hardstanding with the apartment block being visually cramped due to the limited width of the site, between St Margaret’s Road and St Margaret’s Gardens.

“The development would appear as a visually incongruous addition to the street scene which does not respect the pattern of development.

"The proposal is contrary to Local Plan Policies HP3.”

The application received 23 objections from nearby residents with many fearing the development’s impact on Stockwell Road which has traffic lights nearby as well as a bridge.

Others said it would make parking issues on the St Margaret’s estate worse.

The officer also raised concerns about traffic in their report.

They added: “The proposal does not demonstrate safe access and egress from the site onto Stockwell Road, which is a congested section of road adjacent to a junction and traffic lights leading towards the town centre.”

Mr Franklin commissioned a traffic survey of Stockwell Road in February 2024 which showed that on a normal day, 2,869 vehicles go southbound on the road and 2,192 go northbound.

It reported the average speed limit on the road is around 20mph.

A design and access statement attached to the application said the application complies with planning policies and should be approved.

The planning committee will take place at 2pm on Tuesday, May 7 with the meeting streamed live on YouTube.