Contentious plans to build homes to rear of shop given green light

Developers Amberstone are set to put up eight townhouses in a disused former car park to the rear of Home Bargains, on Roundhay Road in Oakwood.

The site used to belong to the Co-op when they occupied the premises at one time.

More than 25 local people had objected to the plans, with some claiming the homes would be “overbearing” for neighbours.

There were also concerns about the prospect of a narrow access road being wedged between two homes on Oakwell Mount, which lies to the south of the development.

Councillors delayed making a decision on the plans in July, in part to see if an alternative access road could be created through the Home Bargains car park, which is in use, from the other side of the site.

But a planning meeting on Thursday was told that idea was a non-starter, because the car park’s owners were unwilling to sell the land to the developer.

The applicants insisted in July that their “high-quality” proposals would improve a derelict and fenced-off site, which has proved to be a magnet for anti-social behaviour in recent years.

A report by council officers said the scheme was “acceptable in principle” and that the properties, all of which will be semi-detached three beds, would “tie in well with the residential dwellings in the immediate vicinity and are not considered to harm the character of the area.”

Councillors took this advice and approved the application.