BT Street Hub at Pavement Opposite 32 The Esplanade, Weymouth

“The proposed BT Street Hub would be a harmful addition to the historically sensitive and significant Esplanade promenade within the Weymouth Town Centre Conservation Area, given its siting, scale, design, appearance and colour with inbuilt LED screens being visually intrusive, adding to the proliferation of street furniture and being read alongside existing LED advertising screens which have been installed along the Esplanade.”

“Description of development 5.1 Consent is sought to replace an existing cash machine and payphone kiosk with an illuminated LED advertising unit which incorporates Wi-Fi and 5G technologies, known as a ‘BT Hub’. The proposed hub would be approximately 1.2m W x 2.98m H x 0.35m D. The existing kiosk/booth to be removed is approximately 0.9m W x 2.2m H.”

“The application site is located on the promenade/walkway which runs along the northern side of The Esplanade, being at the southern end of the walkway, opposite Alexandra Gardens and in close proximity to the Weymouth Beach Sand Sculpture tourist attraction. It is within Weymouth’s Defined Development Boundary (DDB), but just outside the town centre. Nevertheless, it is washed over by the town centre sub-area WEY5 (Esplanade (South)).”

“The site is within the Weymouth Town Centre Conservation Area, and within the setting of numerous listed buildings. These include the grade II listed 24-34 Esplanade, 36 Esplanade, the Fairhaven Hotel, 40 Esplanade, Edwarde’s Statue and the Promenade shelter. Number 36 Esplanade is a non-designated heritage asset. The Weymouth Town Centre Conservation Area Character Appraisal (2012) shows a key view and a ‘townscape effect’ adjacent to the site.”

“Whilst it is acknowledged that LED panel units have been approved and installed in close proximity along the Esplanade, the nearest being under applications P/ADV/2024/02758 and P/ADV/2024/02759, it is considered that the BT Hub would be in close proximity to these other units recently installed, both physically and visually, and that the cumulative effect would appear as a proliferation of this form of technology, cluttering the promenade and being harmful to the setting of…”

“Therefore, whilst the proposal would accord with Local Plan policy SUS2, and would provide public benefits, it is not considered that the proposal would accord with policy COM10 given that it has not been demonstrated that technically feasible alternatives, which create less visual harm, have been explored.”

“The mobile phone network operated by BTEE is amongst the most popular in the country and across the Dorset Council area so it would be reasonable to expect a significant number of the visitors, businesses and residents that need mobile connectivity in and around Weymouth Town Centre would benefit from the improvements to the user experience that these hubs would provide.”

“Whilst Dorset Police does not formally object to this planning application of BT Street Hub installations in principle, at this stage, in order to ensure Dorset Council is able to comply with its duty under Section 17 of the Crime and Disorder Act to do all that it reasonably can to prevent crime and disorder in its area to include anti-social behaviour.”

“Representations received 1 objection has been received Summary of comments for initial scheme: • Object to the scheme. • The applicant’s photo is out of date; it shows a town council poster roundel – these were replaced with digital screens in 2025. Officer note: Illustrations have been revised to show current street furniture. • The new digital advertising screen would be just 11m from another digital advertising screen.”

“The impact on visual amenity and heritage assets was then assessed. It was explained that the location was particularly sensitive, being within the Conservation Area and the setting of Listed Buildings. The proposed hub was considered to have a notable visual impact due to its height, mass and colour. It was also noted that the structure would sit alongside LED advertising panels…”

“Whilst the harm to heritage assets was assessed as less than substantial, it was considered to be towards the higher end of the less than substantial scale. In considering the advertisement consent application, the Planning Officer advised that public safety and highway safety impacts were acceptable.”

“It was proposed by Cllr Taylor and seconded by Cllr Roper that the application be refused.”

“Decision: That the application be refused for the reasons set out in the appendix to these minutes.”