East Grinstead block of flats given the thumbs up

During a meeting of the planning committee on Thursday, officers recommended an application be permitted to demolish the Pikfield Engineering factory, in Durkins Road, and build a block of eight flats.

With concerns raised about overdevelopment, parking and the impact the new building would have on nearby residents, the committee decided by seven votes to four to reject that recommendation.

In most cases, a reason for refusal would be given and that would be the end of the matter unless the application filed an appeal, which the council would then fight.

This time, though, after being told their position was ‘indefensible’, six of the seven who opposed the plans changed their vote, choosing instead to abstain.

Only Robert Eggleston (Lib Dem, Burgess Hill – Meeds) stuck to his guns.

The application was approved by four votes to one with six abstentions.

If the committee had rejected the plan and lost the appeal, the council could have faced a bill of thousands of pounds – and the development would have gone ahead anyway.

Their position wasn’t helped by the fact that West Sussex County Council’s highways team raised no objections to the plans without actually visiting the site.

Access to the flats is via a narrow section of road which has no parking restrictions and is usually full of cars down one side.

John Dabell (Con, East Grinstead – Town) said he was a ‘little bit surprised’ by the highways department’s lack of objection and raised concerns about how emergency vehicles would get to the new flats.

He said: “If you look at the approach road, it’s already full of cars now.

“If the number of people parking at these flats is then increased [by] just a few, it will fill that street up.

“Then the only way that you will get a fire engine down there is over the top of them.

“I’m totally averse to what is being said by West Sussex Highways. They should have had a look at this and done a proper report in my humble opinion.”

With hundreds of applications to consider countywide, the highways team simply cannot get out to all sites, conducting much of their work via computer.

Committee chairman Gary Marsh explained that a site visit would only have been made if requested by planning officers and the local ward members.

No such request was made.

To view the application, log on to pa.midsussex.gov.uk/online-applications and search for DM/20/1516.