Plans to build a row of six three-bedroom homes have been recommended for approval again after they were deferred over multiple concerns.
A controversial proposal to build on the former Bushey Medical Centre car park in Brick Kiln Close was narrowly agreed at a Hertsmere Borough Council planning meeting in November 2021, but when another developer came back for more, the council pushed back its decision.
The approved scheme was for six two-bed terraced homes over three storeys, however the site was sold in early 2022 without it being built.
When the updated proposal first came before the council’s planning committee, councillors asked for more information about the proposed parking provision, “a number of design issues”, and comparisons of aspects of the two proposals, before they could a decision.
The applicant has since provided information showing the increase in cubic volume and floorspace is around one-third, which council officers making a recommendation saw as acceptable.
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The officers’ report, recommending approval, is attached to the agenda for Thursday’s (November 14) planning meeting, where to committee will again be asked to decide whether the development can go ahead.
It also states that the overall design is considered acceptable, the proposal would provide sufficient parking space, and refuse arrangements have been tweaked since the last meeting to site bins further back.
The land was formerly used for parking for Bushey Medical Centre, before it relocated leaving the vacant car park which has been described as "unkept, overgrown, and unattractive".
A 55-signature petition was gathered to oppose the first scheme in 2021. Outraged residents described the neighbourhood, which borders Bushey and Oxhey, as "beautiful, historic, and quaint", and said it is "plain to see" the styling of the six homes would be a "complete change" and "overdevelopment" for the area.
The applicant highlighted its “extensive” consultation with residents and the fact that developing the site allows funds to be reinvested in the NHS.
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