A bid to build new homes on the land which once housed a Walsall pub are expected to be rejected. Members of Walsall Council’s planning committee will discuss the proposal for The Sneyd in Vernon Way, by the applicant PSK Pubs, at a meeting on Thursday, June 20.
Planning officers have recommended the bid for five new houses on the land, on which the old pub once stood, be refused for a number of reasons. Those included the impact the development would have on the Green Belt and a failure to provide any mitigation for the land falling within the Cannock Chase Special Area Of Conservation (SAC) – which requires developers to pay more than £250 per property to go towards the upkeep of the beauty spot.
The item was due to be decided at a meeting in March but it was deferred following a request by the applicants. The report to committee said: “This application has failed to provide SAC mitigation payment and the proposal does not accord with local and national planning policies and guidance as set out in this report.
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“The proposal represents inappropriate development in the Green Belt, fails to take account of the local distinctiveness and rural character of the area and the proposed built development would poorly relate to approved adjacent development in terms of scale, mass, design, density and layout. The proposal also fails to include details of the proposed funding, management, and maintenance of the Greenway.”
In the application, PSK said the building suffered fire damage some years ago and had become a hot bed for people dumping rubbish and committing anti-social behaviour before it was demolished. There is already a development for three new houses being built on the pub’s former car park.
Agents JBVJ Architects said: “The remote and derelict nature of the site attracts vandalism given the secluded nature particularly to the rear of the site which backs onto private existing residential gardens. In essence the proposal seeks to reinvigorate what once was an attractive site, by providing a high quality residential development and associated landscape works that create a character site that is more in keeping with the locality of the land.
“We are confident that the approach has been carefully considered to ensure the site conforms to the Green Belt nature through appropriate built form, landscaping, pedestrian routes and security.”