Controversial HMO plans for Smethwick home rejected a second time
A move to turn a Smethwick home into an HMO has been rejected for a second time by council planners.
An application to convert the home in Cheshire Road, Smethwick, into an eight-bed house of multiple occupation (HMO) has been rejected again by planners at Sandwell Council.
The same plan was rejected in March last year over concerns it would add to the street’s parking problems.
This time around, the council said the “intensification” and “increase in noise and general disturbance” from the proposed HMO would be to the detriment of neighbours.
The council’s planners added the internal layout of the building was “poor” and would result in an “unacceptable living environment” for residents – particularly a basement living room that relied solely on artificial lighting.
The first planning application for a HMO resulted in petitions with nearly 100 signatures being handed to Sandwell Council opposing the move.
Having been rejected last year, the application was resubmitted again to Sandwell Council with little to no changes – which led to more objections being raised by neighbours.
One objector said: “I can find nothing different in this application, it is no different to the previous application which was refused.
“All the reasons for the previous refusal remain exactly the same.
“This seems to be a blatant attempt to try and try again in the hope the application is successful.”
Another objector added: “Cheshire Road is comprised of terraced housing with no off-street parking provision. From mid-afternoon onwards parking is at a premium.
“The proposed households may not have access to vehicles, but the same may not be the case for visitors to them.
“Poor parking etiquette is an increasing problem on the road with cars parked on pavements with the parked vehicles blocking the pavement for parents with buggies, wheelchair users and people who are blind or partially sighted.”
The local authority’s planners said the previously proposed HMO, which through an extension would double the size of the existing four-bed Victorian mid-terrace home, would also result in more noise and disturbance for neighbours.
A report outlining the council’s rejection said the plans showed one shared kitchen for the eight residents but did not include seating or a fridge.
The rooms, the majority of which measured between six and nine square metres, contained enough room for a bed and wardrobe, the council added, but little else for a desk or chair.
The applicant Karanjeet Singh from Nidh Properties had told the council that the home’s basement could be used as a shared facility which planners ruled would “not provide a suitable living environment.”
The council’s report concluded: “It is acknowledged that the proposal would provide an increase in affordable housing which would meet a specific need.
“However, the merits of providing such accommodation would not outweigh the harm identified.”
The council’s highways department was also concerned that allowing a HMO with no parking spaces in an already cramped and congested street would “set a precedent.”
West Midlands Police also objected to the application with the force concerned by the lack of security and management plans – particularly with the potential HMO being in a ‘high-crime rate area’ – as well as the lack of parking spaces and the building being overcrowded. West Midlands Police has also objected to the latest ‘revised’ application.
The home could still be converted into a six-bed HMO without planning permission, the council said.
