Three-Bedroom Bungalow Bid Criticised As 'Garden Grabbing'

A bid to build a three-bedroom bungalow in an Isle of Wight village has been criticised as ‘garden grabbing’ and a ‘threat to the aesthetic charm’ of the landscape.

Freshwater residents and the Badger Trust Isle of Wight have filed objections against Sarah Whalley’s proposal for a new home next to Shorefield House on Freshwater’s Madeira Lane.

The proposed development is to house the daughter and son-in-law of Shorefield House’s owners, according to a submitted Planning and Design Statement.

County Hall has received eight opposing statements, however, with disquiet voiced over pedestrian safety and inconvenience, road conditions and repairs, increased traffic, sewage capacity, affordable housing need, cliff erosion, environmental and wildlife impacts and noise and light pollution.

Other concerns have included the obstruction of neighbours’ views, the development’s effect on Colwell Bay’s character and amenity, a loss of open space and privacy and the setting of an ‘undesirable precedent’.

The application’s Planning and Design Statement said:

“The proposal comprises the formal subdivision of the tract of garden land belonging to Shorefield house, and the creation of a detached single-storey residential dwelling on this site, accessible via Sea View Road.

“Care has been taken with the design approach so that it considers and complements its surroundings.

“The design intention then was to complement the character and history of the site by combining the contemporary design of Sea Glass House with the brick architecture of Shorefield house — its two closest neighbours and the properties the proposal will stand between.”

County Hall’s public consultation on proposal 25/00793/FUL ends on August 8 and a decision has been scheduled for September 2.