Conwy Airbnb host ordered to tear down 'prison watchtower'
Owners of an Airbnb have been told to tear down what neighbours dubbed a "prison camp watchtower" in their garden.The "monstrous" tower was built without planning permission in January 2024 in the garden of a holiday let on Tan y Bryn Road, Rhos-on-Sea, Conwy county.It sparked fury from neighbours who claimed the structure was blighting their day-to-day lives.JAM Domestic Properties Ltd submitted a number of retrospective planning applications to try to retain the "garden room", but these were refused.
Conwy council said: "An enforcement notice has been served which requires the removal of the structure."The Local Democracy Reporting Service has been told that the order took effect on 17 June, with the developer given 10 weeks from that date to launch an appeal.
Nick Whitmore, 35, who moved on to Tan y Bryn with his family in 2021, said the structure compromised their quality of life."It dominates our property and our neighbours," he explained. "[My family] can't even sit at their breakfast table without it being overlooked, and it is the same for lots of other houses in the locality."We are looking forward to the structure coming down."It will mean we no longer have such a dominating and intrusive structure, which is so overbearing, looking over our garden or our neighbours' gardens."Another neighbour previously said the structure was "commanding attention not unlike a prison camp watchtower".
An application by JAM Domestic Properties to retain the structure read: "Views from the raised platform into neighbouring properties were recognised as being available from the initial planning consent."The proposed development is not considered to lead to an acceptable increase to this and is not considered to have a detrimental impact on privacy or residential amenity to neighbouring properties, and therefore would be acceptable on this basis."The firm declined to comment on the enforcement notice.
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BBC News
2 hours ago
- BBC News
Fish and chips for 20p? The Powys chip shop menu frozen in time
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Daily Mail
5 hours ago
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EXCLUSIVE Man at war with council after building a two-storey HOUSE on his driveway without permission
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Mr Ali, the director of a franchise of a chai tea shops, is said not to have lived at the property since purchasing it for £299,000 in 2021. Speaking over the phone, he claimed to have been led astray by builders who told him not to worry about planning permission. He said: 'We're going to appeal. It was my builder who was doing the application for me. It was my first time building something. 'He said 'no problem', 'I'll put the planning in for you, there will be no problem'. 'It was my first time doing anything so I left it to the builders. He said he would get all the paperwork in and would do everything. 'It was the builders who pulled me in that direction and said "don't worry about it". In 2022, Mr Ali was granted permission to demolish the existing garage adjacent to his three-bed home, after purchasing it the previous year for £299,000. In its place, council officials signed off on plans to build a larger 'garage/store' with a room in the loft, with the caveat that 'it is suitably designed and not detrimental to the amenity of existing nearby residents'. The council ruled that what has been built in its place is vastly larger and taller and goes far beyond the permissions Mr Ali was granted. A report refusing retrospective planning consent ruled: 'Having received planning permission for a replacement garage, the applicant has instead construct what is, in effect, a detached dwelling in the front of the house with not planning permission and persistently tried to retain the unauthorised building'. Mr Ali unsuccessfully applied three times for retrospective planning in a bid to make the costly development legal. In an application in 2023, he claimed the building was justified as his father had become disabled and that the structure would allow his parent to live in close proximity and 'receive the care he needs'. 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The Sun
6 hours ago
- The Sun
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