A former doctor’s surgery in the heart of Newport could become ‘affordable’ residential accommodation, including a 9-bed HMO.
Mr R. Owolabi has lodged plans with County Hall for a conversion of the Medina Healthcare buildings at 16 West Street in Newport, vacated last year.
In April 2024, Medina Healthcare said the property’s landlord wished to put it up for sale.
The applicant’s proposal is for a 1-bedroom flat and 3x flats with 2 bedrooms, plus a 9-bed HMO and a ‘substantial’ communal garden for the ‘benefit of all residents’, according to a Design and Access Statement.
“The object is to offer affordable accommodation and HMO facilities beneficial to the Island’s community,
A Planning Statement attached to Mr Owolabi’s application says:
“The proposed conversion of the ex-surgery building is suitable to create the indicated accommodation to provide the self-contained flats and HMO rooms and facilities.
“The buildings and grounds subject to this application are owned solely by the applicant so there will be no impediment to developing the site.
Article continues below this advertisement “The work generated will increase economic activity which should be beneficial for employment on the Island.”
Highways service provider Island Roads objected to the application:
“Due to the lack of on-site car parking, the proposals envisaged in this application could have implications affecting the highway network.
“More favourable consideration could be given if robust evidence was submitted regarding predicted car ownership levels and a Parking Provision Assessment was carried out in accordance with the Guidelines for Parking Provision.”
The council’s public consultation on proposal 25/00800/FUL closes on 15th August and a decision is due on 8th September.
So £50/60 thousand a flat then??????? ye i don’t think so..
This is a shocker of an application. If IWC approve this then we’re truly in a race to the bottom. The “architect” (he’s not an architect or a town planner, just a guy who churns out planning applications for peanuts) should have retired a long time ago. His drawings are terrible, deliberately misleading and he puts zero effort/ thought into his designs. We need genuinely affordable housing, which isn’t easy to build here. We don’t need more sub-standard housing.