ANOTHER attempt is being made to get permission for a house in the grounds of a Greenock West End property.
A two-bedroom, single-storey detached house is again proposed for the grounds of 92 Newark Street, fronting Mews Lane at Westfield Drive.
Council officials refused a previous plan last year saying it would “fail to preserve or enhance” Greenock West End Conservation Area by sub-dividing one of the “large plots that characterise the area”.
They also stated that introducing “an additional built form” to Mews Lane was “contrary to its historic and continued development as a sparsely developed rear service lane”.
A design statement submitted by Quigley Architects with the new application explains: “The new development will preserve and enhance the conservation area as it utilises vacant ground at the the junction of Westfield Drive and Mews Lane to provide a visual termination through the introduction of a sympathetic house design to the main villa while respecting the scale and plot sizes of its more immediate neighbours off Westfield Drive.
“The site previously formed part of a very large rear garden, which due to the unsustainable size has been legally split and now forms vacant ground redundant in use.
“The site proposed for development reflects the plot size and proportion of built ground to garden reflected in the immediate locality.
“Height, roof design, use of materials and colours of the proposal all reflect the immediate locality of ancillary buildings to the main villas, as requested by planning.”
The statement continues: “Our client is submitting the application in order to provide a new accessible dwellinghouse conducive to modern expectations and aspirations in the 21st century and give them the functionality of a family room with direct access and views over their private gardens to the rear of the site.
“The whole project has been driven by informed clients who insisted from the outset that the scale of the proposed house should be modest, however, that the proposed finishing materials and details have been specified to reflect a thorough understanding of the historic surroundings.
“It is important to remember that Westfield Drive was constructed on the site of a former Victorian Villa and a new street formed to access Mews Lane. As such, the considered placement of our building at the head of Westfield Drive gives a termination point to the street view rather than that of a brick wall.
“We believe therefore that by allowing the new ‘ancillary style’ building to be built on the application site it will be significantly beneficial now and for future generations by preserving and enhancing Greenock’s West End Conservation Area.”
The proposal is pending consideration by planners.
