City MP joins angry residents in battle to block apartments plan

MP Meg Munn has also joined the fight against the development, which would see a house at Meadowhead, on the A61, demolished and nine two-bedroomed apartments built in its place.

In her letter to Sheffield Council, Ms Munn says the development would “represent a large massing that will detract from the overall appearance of the area”.

She adds: “It should be possible to design a smaller block of flats that is more in keeping with the area. The development has been designed with the aim of maximising the number of units and people in the development.

“Despite each flat having two bedrooms, the flats still remain small and cramped.”

She goes on to say that Meadowhead, which forms part of the main route between Sheffield and Chesterfield, is a “very busy road, and there have been numerous accidents along it”.

Ms Munn added: “This proposal will increase the number of cars pulling out of the site and therefore will add to the danger.”

A petition bearing 180 signatures has also been submitted by the parishioners of the Our Lady of Beauchief and St Thomas of Canterbury church, which is directly opposite the planned development site.

The petition says the number of parking spaces will be inadequate for the number of flats that are proposed, and this might lead to parking difficulties for the church’s congregation.

A second petition with 31 signatures has also been sent to Sheffield Council, arguing that the parking provision for the nine flats is “wholly inadequate”.

The petition adds: “There are already traffic and parking problems in the area, caused by a range of factors, such as the use of the church directly opposite the site; residents on Meadowhead that have no provision for off-street car parking; parking needs for local shops and businesses and residents of other nearby flat developments.”

Ward councillor Ian Auckland has also waded into the row, saying the proposed apartment block would be “out of character with the prevailing street scene”.

He added: “The concerns of local residents and the church in respect of parking provision are very well-founded.”

However, despite this weight of public opposition, which also includes a further 27 letters of objection from local residents, city planners at Sheffield Council have recommended that planning permission for the development is granted by councillors at a meeting next Monday. The planners’ report points out that the development has already been scaled down from 11 apartments to nine, which “brings the development more in keeping with the surroundings, and give the development a more simplified palette of materials”.

They say the flats would have red brick walls to match neighbouring properties, and the materials in general would be “acceptable and sympathetic to the street scene”.

In terms of parking, the planning officials say Meadowhead is a “very sustainable location” and is “very well served by regular public transport.”

The report adds: “Whilst the parking standards for this type of development would have required an additional two visitor parking spaces, this level of provision is consistent with other flats developments in the area and is considered, on balance, to be sufficient to serve the development, given the highly sustainable location of the site.”

Recommending that permission should be granted, the planners add: “The proposal is considered now to be well-designed and in keeping with the immediate locality.”

Monday’s planning meeting will be held at Sheffield Town Hall.