A DIRECT plea by a man not to let a care home be built next to his mother’s house failed to deter planning officials from giving the scheme the go ahead.
Roger Bell spoke at Tuesday’s planning board meeting on behalf of his elderly mother who lives next door to the site of a proposed ten bed care home at 75 Park Street, Wombwell.
Initial plans for the site which is a 0.28 hectare vacant plot between two large detached homes, one of which belongs to Mr Bell’s 87-year-old mother - were approved in 2015.
The revised plans, submitted by CAS Behavioural Health, are for a ‘simpler’ design, which looks more domestic in appearance and lower in height with screened bin stores at the side of the building.
Mr Bell said he recognises the site is suitable for new development but believes the proposal would have a ‘completely unacceptable impact’ on neighbouring properties and asked the board to refuse the plan.
He said the height of the home would have an overbearing impact on his mother’s home. He said the bin store serving the entire development would be 3m away from the main windows of her house and that she would be affected by noise from vehicles using the car park.
Mr Bell said: “In summary the development is unacceptable because of the unnecessary three storey height of the development having an overbearing impact; the inappropriate setting of the bin storage area and the impact of vehicle movement from the elevated parking area.”
Planning officer Matthew Smith said the overall design of the building had changed for the better and was much simpler with lower eaves and the ridge height of the roof was less dominant on the street scene, with the design now looking more domestic in appearance.
“It is in the same position as the one approved before but is a smaller footprint and further from number 77 Park Street,” he told councillors.
“The front car park meets council standards and is where it was in the previous approved scheme and the bin store, which will be screened, will not result in any adverse impact on neighbours.”
He said a timber cabin proposed at the rear of the site would be used for activities such as painting as part of the progression to independence.
“This proposal for us, which already has planning permission, involves a smaller building with better domestic-type design, is further away from number 77 and has extensive landscaping and overall it is a better scheme.”
The plan was approved by the board.
Coun Dick Wraith told members he had sympathy for Mrs Bell but that the revised scheme was ‘far better’ than the one approved two years ago. He added: “That site has been unkempt land for a long time and this is better than what’s been there before.”
