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25/00290/FUL Demolition of residential dwelling at 6A Bucknills Close and office building at 13 Whitehorse Drive and the construction of nine residential units (3 x 2-bed, 3 x 3-bed and 3 x 4-bed) (Class C3) together with car parking, landscaping and access arrangements.

This is the third application for this Bucknills Close site, both the previous applications having been considered unacceptable by both the Society and the Borough Planning Committee and therefore refused, and the following appeals were both dismissed.

The present application is different, in that it includes the adjacent property at 13 Whitehorse Drive, and thus offers nine residential units, but still fails adequately to address the access and waste disposal issues raised by the geography of the site. See our comment on the EEBC Planning website below.

“This comment is on behalf of Epsom Civic Society.

This is the third application for development of this site, both of the other two have been refused and the appeals which have followed have both been dismissed.

The primary reason for refusal is the long and narrow entrance drive to access the site is below standard of width required with user implications be it by mechanical vehicle, cycling or walking.

The demand or user requirement is now higher in this application with the units of accommodation increasing to nine new units from the previous five and six unit schemes, acknowledging the the office use previously remaining will be extinguished. Furthermore, the type of housing now proposed is more family orientated than formerly with the attendant higher traffic use for that class of dwelling.

There is also the question of refuse collection as a collection truck cannot adequately access and exit the site. It is too long a distance for bins to be placed in Whitehorse Drive on collection days – that is entirely untenable.

The refuse refusal reason was given little weight by the Inspector. ECS suggest that this is a strong point as born out by the collection manager’s report. It is suggested that this refusal is “beefed up” for this application and be given more and stronger prominence in a reason for refusal.

The Society acknowledges the need for housing (although questioning the method of calculation of the target numbers) but applications for development must be reasonable and in accordance with local requirements, policies and character surrounds, with which this application is not compliant and objection is lodged.

See our previous views regarding application 24/00107/FUL here and the earlier 23/00577/FUL here .