Chiswick residents win their case to block “ridiculously tall” development off Devonshire Road

Aerial view showing Manor Gardens, the end of the road where the old garages were, against the end of the terrace, where the development was to have been built

“It would have just been awful” had it been allowed to go ahead

Developers wanting to build on the site where previously there were garages at Manor Gardens, between Ashbourne Grove and Wilton Avenue, off Devonshire Road, have had their planning application turned down.

Residents of Wilton Avenue and Ashbourne Grove in Chiswick were concerned that the developers were making a “land grab” with the development, building something three times bigger than was originally proposed and incorporating a public alleyway into their development.

Local resident Ann Lantorp told The Chiswick Calendar in October she was concerned the public were not able to voice their concerns to Hounslow Council through the planning consultation process because the link on their website was not working.

“They couldn’t have made it more difficult for people to see what they were planning. It was far too big – 33% bigger than originally proposed – and it was not at all transparent what they were planning”.

READ ALSO: Chiswick Residents say use of an alleyway between their roads is under threat from developer

The alleyway which would have been incorporated into the design

Collaboration between resident and councillor enabled ‘People Power”

She is now delighted the Council’s Planning office has turned the development down.

“Thank God they did turn it down. It would have just been awful”, she told us.

She credits Cllr John Todd with helping them understand the planning process and helping them publicise it so people were aware what was happening and could voice their concerns.

“John was so helpful. He was amazing. He could recognise how ridiculous it was and how opaque and untransparent. It was ridiculously high, what they were planning, yet there were no heights on the plans”.

The developers had planning permission for an earlier scheme which they had allowed to lapse, she told me, and were seeking to make big changes by getting them under the wire as adjustments to what had already been agreed.

The land cleared, where the garages used to be and the development was intended to be

Cllr Todd told The Chiswick Calendar:

“Ann did outstanding work. She could see they were taking liberties and she researched and challenged everything”.

The official wording from the Council was that the amended proposal had been refused: ‘by reason of its position, size, height, design and appearance, would be an inappropriate development for Wilton Avenue and the area, failing to maintain and enhance the appearance and character of the area’.

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