Rowan Garden residents say Council was wrong

Pebsham residents claim Rother District Council should not have allowed building at St James Heights right up to their boundary.

They say they have lost privacy, light, and the peace they once enjoyed in their homes and gardens.

Malcolm Hagedorn of Rowan Gardens is so angered by the development at his back door that he applied for a council tax reduction because he feels his property is simply not as valuable as it was before the new development went up.

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St James Heights as been built on the site of the former Nazareth House convent and school and comprises 28 houses but also more than 50 flats.

He was refused the reduction by the Listing Officer in Eastbourne but plans to appeal against the decision.

Malcolm, 76, said that three houses just feet away from the boundary have caused a loss of light and warmth in winter and that noise and dust from the building site is an ongoing problem for him and wife Ann, as well as their Rowan Garden neighbours.

He said: "We have noticed a change. We like to sit out in the garden when the weather is nice but at the present time with the workmen there we cannot go out there.

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"When we moved here three and a half years ago we looked at the original plans so we knew there was going to be some buildings there but we were happy with the way they had planned it at that time. But since moving in, the plans have been changed and agreed by the planning office, and they put two more houses down our side here and another extra one on the end.

"That is something we complained about, but the council thought better of it.

"And again, I can't see how the council has allowed two sheds to be built there, one supposedly for bicycles and the other is for rubbish. It's supposed to be a grade two listed area there. The council hasn't supplied the people who have moved in with rubbish bins and therefore they are bagging rubbish up and putting it in the shed, which has an open doorway. Foxes and seagulls go in and have a party, they drag the rubbish out everywhere and encourage rats, which I don't want to have in my garden."

Another resident of the cul-de-sac is Simon Parmegiani who commented: "When we bought the house we knew there was going to be some building in there but then we found out they were building apartments too - we never knew anything about that part.

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"These three houses should not be there. We are not happy about it. We have people directly facing us in our house, and it is constantly noisy from morning to night. My wife Margaret complained about the noise yesterday. It was impossible to sit outside - we had to go inside and lock the door."

Rother District Council head of planning Tim Hickling said: "When the planning committee made their decision on allowing development at Nazareth House members were mindful of the impact on adjoining properties and that the development should not be overpowering '“ proposals for a three-and-a-half story building were refused as a result.

"Members felt with the condition of a three-meter boundary hedge and development limited to two-storeys the application was not overpowering.

"Residents were able to make representations to the committee when the application was heard. Neighbouring residents would also have been aware that a development was proposed on that site.

"Any complaints surrounding noise on site can be reported to our environmental health team."

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