A planning application to demolish two pairs of semi-detached houses at 145 - 151 Kingsway, Hove, and replace them with a nine-storey building of 42 apartments, has been refused by council officers.
The application sought to replace the existing 4 houses with a residential block of 34 two-bedroom and 8 one-bedroom flats.
The building would feature front and rear balconies and have ground floor car, motorcycle and cycle parking spaces.
The two pairs of semi-detached houses on the north side of Kingsway are within the Pembroke and Princes Conservation Area. The conservation area is unique in Hove in terms of its 'garden suburb' atmosphere.
The site is flanked by the 6 storey Princes Marine Hotel and the 6/7 storey Viceroy Lodge.
Applications for the demolition of the existing semi-detached houses have previously been refused 6 times between 2008 and 2010.
During the consultation seventy-four comments were received objecting to the proposed development. Reasons cited included that the building would be taller than neighbouring properties; of poor design not in keeping with the conservation area; and overlooking neighbouring properties.
The Hove Civic Society and the Regency Society jointly objected, as did the Brighton Society and the Conservation Advisory Group.
Ten letters were received in support of the development, including 3 from residents of one of the application properties. Reasons given included that it would provide much needed housing, rejuvenate the area, and would be an energy efficient building.
In their published decision and report officers detailed 3 key aspects of the application that led to its refusal:
The excessive size was judged to be out-of-place in such a prominent and sensitive location, producing of a cramped form of development and an overdevelopment of the site.
The plans submitted offered a low provision of planted areas with an undue proportion of the outside spaces being hard surfaces, so not reflecting the garden suburb character of the conservation area.
The scale of the proposed development would result in significant loss of daylight or sunlight to neighbouring properties. The communal gardens to the main block at Viceroy Lodge would also suffer unacceptable loss of natural light while some residents of that building would suffer loss of privacy or overlooking from windows and balconies on the rear of the proposed building.
28 of the flats in the proposed development would only have a single aspect, which would give rise to unacceptable living conditions. The south facing flats would be prone to overheating, and those facing north (and particularly those with or below balconies) suffering from insufficient natural light.
Councillor Jacob Allen, deputy chair of the Planning Committee, said: “We are committed to delivering accessible, affordable and high-quality homes for all in the city.
“The size and scale of this application, however, has caused a lot of concern for neighbouring residents and community groups, and would not have delivered new homes of the quality set out in the planning policies we judge applications against.
“The issues with this scheme identified in the officer’s decision significantly outweigh the benefits of the additional homes in this case.”
You can view the application and accompanying papers through our online Planning Register by searching for application reference number BH2023/02311.