Winchester council approve plans to alter Alresford bungalow

James Phare, of Rosebery Road, applied for permission to make alterations and additions to an existing chalet bungalow to form a new first floor and attached garage, with the application also covering associated landscape works.

The application was approved at the Winchester City Council planning committee on Wednesday, June 12.

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Proposed elevations of the house (Image: Winchester City Council)

In a statement read out by his daughter Lucy Sutton, John Sutton, of Rosebury Road, objected to the application, saying: “We live in the property which neighbours this one to the south. We have lived there since 2016, and my parents before me since 1995 when the house was built.

“We enjoy the peace and quiet of our property, which is completely private and not currently interfered with by any of our neighbours. The proposed development will alter all this, as south-facing windows will overlook our front, side and rear gardens and lead to loss of privacy and the raised platform will generate an unacceptable level of noise to our rear garden.”

In his statement, Mr Sutton asked the committee to impose conditions on the application, making it so the rear-facing windows have an obfuscating glaze attached to them, minimising the risk of overlooking.

Ann Bean, of New Alresford Parish Council, said: “We do not have a strong objection, but we have some concerns going forward. New Alresford is a highly sought-after area, and we are in the process of making a neighbourhood plan. We have had an assessment, which has shown the lack of affordable houses and a lack of smaller homes.

“Our main concern is that this is an example of a smaller, affordable property that would be suitable for first-time families, taking it and not just expanding it but redeveloping it”.

Cllr Bean was also concerned that the property could overshadow the street due to the expansion, and that some of the materials used in the expansion, including zinc, would not be in keeping with the town’s character.

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Speaking in favour of the application, agent Jonathan Moore said: “The owner has decided to retain the vast majority of the structure and its embodied carbon footprint and add an efficient, highly sustainable series of additions that will create a new family home for them now and well into their future.”

Cllr Jonathan Williams said he would be voting in favour of the application, saying: “I think it is a very well-designed property, in regards to the climate crisis, so I much welcome that.”

Cllr Jane Rutter said that she would also be voting to approve the application but said that there are a lot of developments happening in Alresford, saying “The town is losing a lot of small homes, and I do hope the neighbourhood plan will address that. But I think it is too late in this case, that horse has probably bolted.”

The planning committee unanimously voted to approve the application.