Ealing Residents' Fury Over Planning Application For Conservation Area

Historic building could be massively extended to house seven flats

More than a hundred people have objected to planning proposals to extend and convert a historic building in an Ealing conservation area (CA).

59 Eaton Rise is in the Mount Park CA and regarded a heritage asset as an example of the work of John Galloway, a new application has been put to Ealing Council to change the current 2 flat set-up to 7 self-contained flats.

The applicant wants to make substantial changes to the rear of the property - a three storey rear extension with basement level excavation, single storey rear extension and three storey side infill extension; two dormer windows to the front facing roofslope and two dormer windows to the rear facing roofslope; three rooflights to the front facing roofslope; erection of a single storey outbuilding to the rear for cycle and refuse storage, and associated external elevation works and boundary treatment.

Local residents are angry and have objected saying this type of development is entirely unsuitable.

Comments include:

''This conversion of an important historic site in Ealing should not be approved. It is not in keeping with the original building or the conservation area. It also entails loss of mature trees and their habitats with significant ecological harm. There will also be a negative impact on parking in a busy area, increased traffic and air pollution.'

'' The potential additional 20 or so residents, with the associated traffic they will bring through visitors, bin collections etc plus even more pressure on parking is simply unacceptable in what is already a very busy road with a plentiful supply of flats. All this traffic noise and pollution will have a direct impact on me as my ground floor windows directly face onto the junction of Elmcroft Close and Eaton Rise.

''I am appalled that the council has allowed this second planning application for this site to proceed. This is as bad as the original application in terms of its impact on the streetscape and the conservation area as a whole.

Trying to fit 7 flats onto this plot remains a massive over-development, overshadowing Elmcroft Close, destroying 6 mature trees and damaging the heritage assets at numbers 59 and 57 Eaton Rise by extending to the boundary, thus creating a forbidding brick terrace rather than the two beautiful detached villas, separated by a backdrop of mature trees that exists today.

In conclusion: The council has a duty to protect the Conservation Area not destroy it. There is no public benefit from this development and a massive amount of harm. The council should reject this application immediately.

'' If the proposal is allowed then a dangerous precedent will be set; a floodgate will be opened for garden-grabbing planning applications within the CA and the Council will not be able to refuse granting permissions.''

The application which is 'pending consideration' can be viewed here.

November 7, 2018