|
|
 |
| |
Melanie Cooke with a copy of the letter she sent to Prince Charles, pictured with neighbours who are aiming to block plans for a new home on their terraced street |
Neighbours ask for royal approval in battle over former dairy
NEIGHBOURS opposing a new home in Gospel Oak have written to Prince Charles as they fight to save the look of their terraced Victorian street.
The site, in Estelle Road, is in a cul-de-sac which once housed a dairy. Owner Gary Hodes wants to build a four-storey, two-bedroom house over the entrance to the site.
The designs were inspired by an architect’s visit to a Gospel Oak church in the Mansfield Conservation Area. But neighbours say the site is already too busy, and that the front of the home will be an eyesore.
Estelle Road resident Melanie Cooke wrote a letter to Prince Charles, asking for his support in opposing the application. She quoted His Royal Highness’s comments on the new wing of the National Gallery, which he criticised when it opened.
She said: “I asked the Prince for support, and quoted his phrase that it would look like a ‘monstrous carbuncle on the face of a much loved friend.”
Ms Cooke is yet to receive a reply.
Mr Hodes, who hopes the Town Hall’s planning committee will grant permission at the meeting tonight (Thursday), believes his architect has come up with a scheme that will enhance the street.
He said: “The architect took inspiration from the church around the corner. It has buttresses and they are more or less the same as the front of the house. And the house has a lot of glass.”
Two previous applications were turned down, and a further plan was withdrawn by the owner.
|
 |
|
|
|
