Two rooftop flats at 1-9 Hildreth Street Mews, London SW12

The site and surroundings

The site contains three three-storey buildings with commercial space below and flats above, accessed from Hildreth Street Mews and within Balham Town Centre.

“SITE DETAILS: The site consists of three, three-storey buildings (Blocks A to C) with commercial floorspace at ground floor and flats above and is located south-west of four-storey commercial/residential buildings along Hildreth Street. Vehicle and pedestrian access are provided via Hildreth Street Mews, which is accessed through a passageway beneath no. Hildreth Street and an entrance on Bedford Hill.”

Officer report

Earlier applications

Earlier proposals for additional floors and flats were refused, including one appeal-dismissed scheme criticised for its excessive and inappropriate form.

“2012 (2011/5334) Refused, Appeal Dismissed: Construction of additional floor of accommodation to Blocks A and B to provide 3 new flats with private amenity space. Reason for refusal: The proposed additional storey, by reason of its excessive size and inappropriate siting, would result in an over dominant and incongruous addition to the host buildings, which would impose an unacceptable canyoning effect upon the surrounding public realm while railing to display an acceptable…”

“2010 (2010/3054) Refused: Construction of additional floor of accommodation to three buildings to provide 6 new flats including balconies at new roof level Reason for refusal: The proposal would result in an overdevelopment of the site, involving extensions, the scale and bulk of which would unduly add to the existing sense of enclosure and would adversely affect the living conditions of neighbouring occupiers of the buildings and those immediately surrounding in terms of…”

Officer report

What residents objected to

Residents objected to overlooking, loss of light, overbearing design, overdevelopment, noise, construction disruption, waste, access and previous refusals.

“The extension would be of a different design style from the rest of the building, appearing out of character. - Residents in the new flats would result in noise for the residents of the flats below. - Construction project would result in significant disruption and noise pollution, impacting on neighbours’ ability to work from home. Request for building works to be restricted to times when most residents are typically not home.”

“OBJECTIONS: summarised as: - The new flats would allow overlooking into neighbouring properties. - Roof extensions would block daylight and sunlight to neighbouring flats and their balconies. - Concerned that the provided Daylight/Sunlight Assessment only makes assumptions about Coalbrook Mansions. Concerns about accuracy of Daylight/Sunlight report.”

Officer report

Who spoke

Councillor Hedges addressed the committee on behalf of local residents, raising procedural, ownership, design, amenity, noise, waste and access concerns.

Members’ questions

Members questioned notification, the dissolved head leaseholder, the differences from earlier refusals, daylight effects and construction traffic management.

“The Committee was informed that the calculation had been done for this proposal, and the daylight situation initially reported for each of the blocks indicated had dramatically improved. For example, of the 43 windows assessed, 36 of those met the BRE guidelines.”

“In relation to the market traders of the Hildreth Street Market nearby, Members asked about how they would be engaged in relation to the construction traffic that would need to pass through the market, so that there would be minimal disruption. In response, the Head of Transport Strategy confirmed that this element would be set out in the Construction Management Plan that the Council would need to approve once received. He added that if it…”

Minutes

The committee vote

The committee voted five in favour and two against granting planning permission as set out in the report.

“RESOLVED – (5 for and 2 against) that planning permission be granted as set out in the report, noting the additional information as set out in the late items of correspondence paper.”

Minutes