DC Casebook: Leisure and Entertainment - Hotel extension held harmful to amenity

Planning, 16 May 2008

The hotel was located in a quiet, predominantly residential area with a limited number of guest houses and small hotels. The appellants explained that the conference and banqueting facilities would cater for up to 180 delegates, which was equivalent to the maximum overnight accommodation as proposed to be expanded. They also proposed to rearrange car parking facilities to provide 53 spaces.

The inspector decided that the level of parking would not meet likely demand and would lead to a large number of vehicles being parked in adjacent streets. The expanded use was also likely to involve taxi and minibus journeys late at night, he reasoned. Taken as a whole, he decided that the proposal would undermine the area's ambience and the noise impact could not be controlled by imposing conditions.

The recognised need for more hotel accommodation in London up to 2026 and the scheme's contribution towards needs in the borough did not outweigh this harm, he determined. However, he rejected the council's claim that a hotel development on the scale proposed should be located in a town centre. The PPS6 requirement to assess sequentially preferable sites did not apply in this case because the hotel was already present at the site, he opined.

DCS Number 100-054-640

Inspector David Stephenson; Inquiry.