Plans to demolish a garden centre on the outskirts of Keswick and replace it with 12 new homes will be discussed next week.
There have been 13 letters of objection to the proposed development of the Little Dodd Garden Centre off the A591 along with a recommendation for refusal from Underskiddaw Parish Council.
The application, to be discussed by the Lake District National Park Authority’s development control committee on Wednesday, seeks planning permission for the redevelopment of the whole of the site to provide a housing development of six affordable homes and another six to meet local need.
The development would involve the reuse of the original manager’s bungalow and a new-build scheme on the rest of the site. There will be six two-bedroom semi-detached houses at the front of the site, five houses — three three-bedroom houses and two four-bedroom homes — to the rear in a courtyard arrangement.
The existing bungalow will be converted into a three-bedroom detached house to meet a local need.
All houses will have private gardens. Houses to the rear will have garages and the application proposes 32 parking spaces including dedicated visitor parking and an area of open space in the middle of the site and wider landscaping.
The site previously contained a series of glasshouses and steel sheeted buildings and polytunnels with a café, office, toilets and large gravel car park at the front of the site.
The centre was established as a simple nursery in the early 1950s.
It grew from selling plants from seed to selling imported plants, gardening equipment, ornaments, sheds, hard landscaping and other materials.
In 2007, the LDNPA’s development control committee approved outline plans to redevelop the site within one large building, consolidating the varied collection of buildings on the site.
In 2013, the committee approved an amended scheme for the redevelopment of the garden centre to replace the existing manager’s accommodation with a new dwelling a short distance away within the site.
Soon after, the business closed and did not reopen.
Since then the site has deteriorated in appearance and some buildings have been demolished and some partially demolished.
In 2015 planning permission was refused for the conversion of the original manager’s bungalow to holiday letting accommodation. Permission was subsequently granted on appeal.
Members of Underskiddaw Parish Council were concerned about the loss of an employment site and felt it would be more appropriate for use as small work units.
It was also pointed out that the A591 is a fast and dangerous road and there were concerns about the proximity of children to a 60mph road with a lack of pedestrian infrastructure.
Councillors also felt that if approved it could be the start of the creation of a larger development.
A report to the meeting from area planner Kevin Richards says: “The proposals would change the character of the site to one which is more intensively developed with larger permanent buildings, gardens, parked cars and roads.
“The area is characterised to a degree by sporadic development; large detached houses, hotels and farmsteads.
“The site is a component part of the patchwork of development in the area and the proposals would not change that in an adverse way.
“In the context of the appearance of the existing site I consider that the proposals would have a neutral to slight beneficial landscape impact considering its existing appearance.
“Visual impact would be largely restricted to motorists and some filtered views of the site from the road to the rear of the site through Millbeck although this road is characterised by its woodland cover and any views which are possible are fleeting and in the context of existing development.”
The meeting is recommended to delegate the planning decision to the head of development management to approve subject to appropriate conditions and planning obligations.
