HMO proposal thrown out for second time

Proposals for a new HMO in Newport have been thrown out for a second time.

Council officers rejected applicant JONIK Properties and Developments Ltd’s plans to redevelop the property at 78 Caerau Road.

HMOs (houses in multiple occupation) are typically properties for between three and six single, unrelated adults who have their own private bedrooms but share other communal areas.

In this case, the developer proposed converting ground- and first floor office space to create five new en suite bedrooms, with a sixth bedroom and separate bathroom added to the building’s top floor.

A living room and kitchen would also have been created on the ground floor.

In a supporting statement, it was argued the property was within a short walking distance of the city centre and public transport, and the proposed HMO would be “well below the cut off point in acceptable numbers” of those property types locally.

But Newport City Council planning officers disagreed, judging the conversion would mean an “overconcentration” of HMOs in the area, above the 15% threshold set out in the local authority’s planning guidance.

This risked an “adverse impact on social cohesion”, the officers said.

They also refused planning permission on the grounds the proposed kitchen was “insufficiently sized” for future occupants, and added the redevelopment would be “unsustainable” with no contribution to affordable housing.

Two Allt Yr Yn ward councillors also objected to the application.

Cllr Pat Drewett raised concerns about parking pressures and said there were other HMOs “in the immediate vicinity”.

He warned “the continued concentration of such developments risks further eroding the residential nature of the area”.

Cllr Matthew Evans called parking proposals “woefully inadequate” as well as raising concerns about the number of HMOs in the neighbourhood.

The application was a resubmission after a first HMO plan was rejected by the city council in February.