11/00713/F - Borough Council of King's Lynn & West Norfolk

The formation of an access to the rear of London House to get access to the new property
behind Lime House will reduce the size of the garden to London House. The proposed new
dwelling will increase the density of built form to the rear of Lime House and reduce the
space available to the occupants of Lime House. This issue is addressed in more detail
below.
One of the key issues of the new dwelling would be its impact in the adjacent church and
churchyard. Elements of the new building will be visible from the churchyard, specifically the
1½ storey structure. The latter will protrude above the wall to the same extent and be the
same height as the gig house. The single-storey element of the new dwelling will be
relatively inconspicuous above the wall. As previously mentioned, the setting of the church
includes or historically included continuous development on two sides. Part of the western
side currently has a hard boundary with Lime House, and the gig house is a notable feature
along this boundary. Whilst the development would have had almost no effect had the new
build all been single storey, on balance, the introduction of another structure of similar
proportions to the gig house will not materially or detrimentally affect the setting of either
Lime House or the church and the Conservation Area in which they both stand.
The refurbishment and change of use of London House will bring about a marked
improvement to the character of that Listed Building and to the character of the Conservation
Area around the Green.
The Conservation Officer has no objection to the proposal and is recommending approval of
the listed building application elsewhere on this agenda. The Conservation Areas Advisory
Panel has also reviewed the scheme and has no objection to the scheme. The panel
acknowledged that the proposals would bring London House back in to use.
Trees
Twenty individual trees and 3 groups have been surveyed on or adjacent to the site. Three
of these have been identified as being of ‘moderate’ quality and value – a mature ash in the
garden of Lime House; a mature magnolia to the north-west of the gig-house and a mature
oak in the church yard. None of these trees will need to be removed but conditions will need
to be attached regarding means of construction and protection during construction.
Twelve trees and three groups have been classified as being of low quality and having low
value. These include apple trees in the rear garden of Lime House and the large willow on
the London Road frontage. All of these will need to be removed to facilitate the
development.
Finally, the self-set Ash trees in the rear garden of London House will also need to be
removed, either because they are being suppressed by the Oak or because they are causing
damage to the property.
Residential Amenity
The size of the gardens to both London House and Lime House would be reduced as a
result of the development. However, it is not considered that this would materially affect the
amenity of existing or future occupants, given the character of the area. This character is
varied and it is not uncommon for substantial houses, such as the adjacent Mulberry House,
to have limited gardens. Equally, there are also examples of substantial houses with
extensive grounds, such as Manor House, which is next door but one to Lime House.
The new build parts of the scheme are predominantly single-storey so over-looking will not
present an issue. Where they are taller at the rear of Lime House, the openings have been
11/00950/F Development Control Board
25 July 2011
82