A bid to turn a former gift shop into flats has been refused due to concerns it would have a ‘significantly adverse impact’ on an Isle of Wight town centre.
Council officers turned down Mr M. Croll’s planning application to turn the ground floor of 25 – 27 Castle Street in East Cowes, a property formerly home to the Value 4 U gift shop, into 2x 2-bedroom apartments.
The proposed units included a bathroom, kitchen, hallway and lounge.
In a decision report, planners said:
“The proposed scheme would result in the loss of a ground floor retail unit, within the primary retail frontage, which would have a significantly adverse impact on the retail function, character, vitality and viability of the East Cowes town centre.”
In addition, they cited concerns relating to flooding risk, the lack of a contribution towards affordable housing provision, the environment and bin storage.
East Cowes Town Council also opposed proposal 25/00145/FUL:
“The town centre’s business capacity and critical mass have been compromised by the ad-hoc residential conversion of some ground floor retail premises and a scattering of new-build residential dwellings recently created among the commercial premises.
Article continues below this advertisement “East Cowes town centre has a strategic advantage in that it is the only location on the Island where a significant number of available business premises are located directly adjacent to a vehicle ferry terminal.”
A Planning Statement submitted as part of Mr Croll’s application said:
“The site is currently vacant and has been on the market for some time. The ground floor is suitable to convert into 2x self-contained flats.
“This will add to the residential stock of the area. The site is controlled by the applicant so there is no impediment to developing the site.”
What planet are these so called councillors on, supposedly we are in the midst of a housing shortage and here is the opportuntiy to turn a derelect property in accomodation, but no, we will let this shop remain empty indefintely because no one wants it.
East Cowes businesses sadly died about 7 years ago. The Council could’ve helped by building a bridge from East to West, but instead spent the money on The new Floater and the changes to the old B & Q roundabout.
So why live in the past and insist that the old shop stays as a shop, when in fact it has been empty for nearly 7 years, with absolutely no interest from anyone wanting to take it on, due to lack of customers. Why not use that building to home a family, instead of using countryside to build new houses on?
What strange logic – how can it be better to deliberately keep a shop empty in a ghost town than provide two homes???
Yep that’s the way keep monkey town a shit hole for all to enjoy.
Obviously no one wants the premises as a retail shop so why not change to residential, it adjoins existing residential properties in York Avenue so what is the problem.
As long as it doesn’t flood like the shop did
in the past.
For goodness sake open your eyes, there are two supermarkets within 100 yards of the place that suck out any chance of small businesses setting up there.
Does anybody remember the small, I would call it an “iron mongers” shop, a couple of doors along Castle street from what was a veg shop that they don’t want to be accommodation?
A short chap with half glasses used to run it I remember.
Impact adversely how? It’s a couple of flats not a nuclear power statiom