Solar panels refused for Spalding salon as council rules it would 'damage the integrity' of the town centre
Plans for solar panels on the roof of a hairdressing salon have been refused amid fears they would 'damage the integrity' of the town centre.
The owners of 33 Red Lion Street had applied to put ten panels on the western elevation and six to the south of the 1995-built red brick property - but this has been turned down.
Planning permission is needed due to the fact the property is in the Spalding Conservation Area - and the salon is next to the Grade II listed Red Lion Hotel.
The application was opposed by South Holland District Council's conservation officer and planners ruled it was the panels on the western elevation that were the issue.
A report stated: "As the proposed panels on the south would be obscured from view, the relative potential impact of this aspect of development is minor. There would be a visual disparity when viewed from above, however, at street level, the panels would have little to no impact.
"However, the western cells would dramatically negatively impact the character of the surrounding area and undermine the sense of place currently established in Spalding town centre.
"The SHDC Conservation Officer has stated their objections against the proposal on the grounds that the works will damage the integrity of the Conservation Area and will be in breach of policy 29 section B.
"Therefore, the planning balance is against the proposal."
The western set of panels was described as an 'outlier' for the location - which is next to the Red Lion Quarter building.
The applicant - MR and CM Senior - had said the panels would provide the premises with affordable power and provide a 'much-improved' carbon footprint.
The conservation officer's objection stated: "This proposal, by virtue of its intention to place modern photovoltaic cells on a highly visible elevation within a prominent section of the conservation area, fails to respect the standard of visible materials within this portion of the town centre and the slate roof of the host property, which is a common feature of this section of the Conservation Area.
"Furthermore, the proposal does not seek to do anything to mitigate against the effect the proposal would have on the roofscape within the conservation area.
"The addition of photovoltaic cells would represent an unwieldy and highly visible addition to the rooftop and would risk generating a precedent of incongruous additions to visible roof pitches even within sensitive locations within the town centre and conservation area.
"The deployment of Photovoltaic within the conservation area may be possible, however, it would generally be expected that in all but exceptional circumstances, photovoltaic cells should be restricted to sections of roof not visible from the public realm or at least areas where the visual impact upon public realm views would be mitigated against.''
*What do you think? Is the council right to refuse the plan on these grounds - or should this have been allowed? Post your thoughts below or email andrew.brookes@iliffepublishing.co.uk