Fresh proposals to demolish South Downs squash club and build flats

Planning permission is being sought from Horsham District Council to knock down Storrington Squash Club in Greyfriars Lane and put the eight flats on the site, along with 14 parking spaces.

It is planned to build six two-bedroom flats, one one-bedroom flat and one three-bedroom flat.

Planning permission was granted for a previous scheme in 2018 but officials now say that the earlier plans – for smaller flats – were now considered not sufficient to meet required standards.

The new planning application has amended the layout and style of the flats.

In a statement to the council, agents Lomax Architecture say: “It has been demonstrated and acknowledged that the existing use of the site as a squash club is no longer

viable.

"The loss of this sport and leisure use and change of use to residential has been confirmed as acceptable for the site by previous consent.

"It is not realistically possible to convert the existing building structure to accommodate residential dwellings, due to its form, structure and materials, so will be necessary to demolish and replace it with a purpose built new residential building.

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"This also provides the potential to replace the existing building with one which sits more comfortably with its surroundings close to the Storrington Conservation Area.”

At the original planning committee meeting in 2018, it was said that the club was not financially viable and would close whether or not planning permission was given.