An appeal against a national park refusal of a scheme to convert a garden shed to a holiday let at a Pembrokeshire seaside village with the highest rates of second homes and holiday lets in the county has been dismissed.
Last April, in an application before Pembrokeshire Coast National Park, Shabnam Banihashem of 19a Wesley Road, Little Haven sought permission to convert a rear garden shed, already replaced with a summerhouse, to holiday let accommodation.
Local community council The Havens had objected to the scheme, saying it has concerns over parking and highway access arrangements, and concerns about impact on Highway traffic safety-related matters.
An officer report recommending refusal said: “The Authority has concerns in connection with the proposal due to the impact upon the residential amenity of the host dwelling, and its immediate neighbours, the impact upon the character of the Little Haven Conservation Area due to the potential for additional traffic, and due to the proposed summerhouse being unsuitable in terms of size for the use of holiday letting.”
The application was refused on grounds including “introducing a significantly greater level of noise and disturbance than the current situation, to the detriment of the residential amenity of neighbouring properties,” and impact on the conservation area.
Since that refusal, the applicant appealed the decision with Planning and Environment Decisions Wales (PEDW); a site visit by the inspector taking place on January 28 of this year.
The main areas covered in the appeal were the effect of the proposal on the living conditions of neighbouring occupiers and future occupiers of the proposal, with regard to noise and privacy, and the character of the Little Haven Conservation Area, the inspector’s report said.
In dismissing the appeal, she said: “I have found the proposal would be acceptable with regard to its effect on the Conservation Area.
“However, this is outweighed by the harm that would be caused to the living conditions of the occupiers of the host dwelling, as well as occupiers of the proposal, with regard to privacy.”
A previous national park report, based on the second homes council tax premium payable to Pembrokeshire County Council, has said nearly two-thirds of properties in Little Haven are either second homes or holiday lets.
At the time of the 2023 report, the highest rates of second homes or holiday lets in the national park were: Nolton Haven 60 per cent, and Little Haven 62.96 per cent.
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