Apartments plans for former hotel site turned down

Published on 22nd March 2007 in News

Three planning applications relating to the creation of 18 apartments on the site of the Lowther Hotel in Goole were turned down by members of East Riding of Yorkshire Council's (ERYC) western area planning committee earlier this week.

Meeting on Tuesday, members of the committee refused an application - put forward by Mitre Taverns - to allow alterations to be made to the existing Lowther Hotel in Aire Street to create 12 apartments. The application was deferred in July last year over an issue relating to the historically-significant Murals Room, and to allow for a noise assessment to be carried out.

Following the previous planning meeting, the applicant prepared an amended plan which excluded the room with the exposed murals from development, making it an isolated room in the development which would be able to be accessed from the common areas of the apartment development.

This newspaper has previously reported how Goole Town councillors Eric Raddings and Jean Kitchen launched a campaign to save two murals in particular, and Cllr Raddings said he would prefer to see the Murals Room blocked off and used by the community and local interest groups.

But planning officers were not happy for a room with public access within a residential development, due to the potential for nuisance and disturbance to residents of the flat complex.

A report from ERYC's Environmental Health department also suggested that the noise from the nearby docks, which operate on a 24-hour basis, would be enough to generate complaints, and planning officers therefore recommended that councillors refuse the application.

A second application for listed building consent for alterations to the Lowther Hotel to create 12 apartments came up against problems as the issue of the Mural Rooms being made available to members of the public faced security issues, and similar concerns over noise pollution were raised following a report from the Environmental Health department. The report stated that double-glazing would need to be fitted within the building to reduce noise levels, but this was not thought to be in keeping with the 'historic fabric' of a listed building.

A final planning application from Mitre Taverns for six apartments in the rear courtyard of the hotel was refused, once again over issues of noise pollution, as the development is in close proximity to a 24-hour operational port.