More than 100 objections fail to stop approval of ‘first’ HMO in village

More than 100 letters of objection against a proposed HMO conversion in Maesycwmmer have failed to persuade council planners to reject the scheme.

Caerphilly County Borough Council has approved planning permission for 7 Erasmus Terrace to be turned into a house in multiple occupation (HMO) for up to four people.

According to the council’s assessments, if completed it will be the village’s first HMO.

These are typically properties for single, unrelated adults who have their own bedrooms but share other communal areas such as kitchens, bathrooms or living rooms.

In this case, the Erasmus Terrace property currently contains three bedrooms, but if the plans go ahead the ground floor living room would be divided to create an extra sleeping area.

The application was made by D2 Propco Limited, a firm set up “to provide vulnerable adults and young people a safe place to stay”, according to its website.

Documents submitted to the council show the property is not vacant, but report the owner has been informed of the planning application.

A planning officers’ report shows the council received 119 objections to the proposed conversion, with concerns ranging from limited parking availability to pressures on local services.

Some of the objections included speculation about the property’s future tenants, should the HMO conversion go ahead.

But officers said a property’s “end users are not controlled through the planning process”.

A HMO for four people is “not considered to lead to a significant increase in activities at the property”, they added, arguing a four-person family could feasibly live there without requiring any change-of-use planning permission.

They also said the conversion would not breach national guidance on overconcentrations of HMOs, and “would not have an unacceptable impact upon the character and amenity… of Maesycwmmer”.

The officers also said Caerphilly Council faces a “severe shortage of this type of property and heavily relies on bed and breakfast accommodation to meet the shortfall”.

It was accepted that parking in the area is “under pressure” – but the officers said the proposed HMO would have a parking requirement “not dissimilar” to a family home of the property’s size, and judged the conversion wouldn’t “detrimentally impact current parking arrangements at the site”.

Some objections also claimed the conversion could “ruin” the area.

In response, planning officers said: “Given this is the first HMO in Maesycwmmer, it is not considered to have an impact on the wider community.”

Officers granted change-of-use planning permission, subject to several conditions.