Plans to convert Bridgnorth cave into holiday let - but not everyone is thrilled
Plans to convert an ancient cave in Bridgnorth into a holiday let have been submitted to Shropshire Council.
The cave, one of several in the sandstone cliffs, has been used for the last 15 years as a storage facility by Great British Trading Ltd.
Now applicant, Damian Bryan has applied to convert it into a dwelling for use as a holiday let.
It is set along the Riverside about 10 metres from the Bank Steps.
The application says that Bridgnorth has a history of cave use from dwellings to incorporated caves into homes.
"Hermitage caves, Dracups cottage and Cartway are also well known cave dwellings within the town," the application said.
"The Cave suits a small one-bedroom holiday let. This requires a change of use from business to residential."
A proposed layout shows a lounge room with a passageway into a small single-story cave which would have a bathroom and kitchen/diner area.
The application says: "The cave is naturally solid and integral. Sandstone is incredibly hard under compression and can take massive loads. We don’t know how long the cave has been in use, but certainly well over 100 years.
"The cave exterior will look more modern with windows as doors."
A couple who live close by, Russell and Petra Bate, have objected to the planning application.
They say the proposal would block the only safe pedestrian access along Riverside, endangering motorists, pedestrians, parents with push chairs and disabled in wheel chairs.
"The current proposal for residents parking are based on a severely limited number of spaces that local resident must rely on to park. This just adds more pressure to the existing finite resource for the local population.
"We are also aware that bats and birds, and various small animals mice nest in the foliage and caves along Riverside and could be disturbed by this development."
