Demolition of house looks set to get the go-ahead despite scores of objections

Conwy’s planning committee is set to grant permission for a developer to knock down a Llanfairfechan home to create access to a field to build a new housing estate, despite 179 objection letters from residents. Applicant Llion Thomas wants to demolish 11 Gorwel in Llanfairfechan so Coastal Construction can build 43 houses on a field at the back of the estate.

The matter is set to be discussed at a special planning committee meeting next Thursday, and planning officers have recommended the committee approve the plans – subject to 13 affordable houses being built. An earlier planning application was withdrawn that included nine affordable homes.

If granted, the developer will build two one-bedroom properties; twenty-three two-bedroom homes; eleven three-bedroom homes; six four-bedroom homes; and one five-bedroom property. The plans include associated public open space, landscaping, and means of highway access and pedestrian connectivity.

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Residents highlighted multiple reasons to refuse the application, including road safety, parking, and damage to the environment. Sign up for the North Wales Live newsletter sent twice daily to your inbox.

Glyn Jones was one of the very many residents who wrote to Conwy to raise their objection. He said: “Village Road is already a bottleneck at times with so many cars coming up and down. The prospect of having another 84 plus cars in the village, driving up and down Gorwel, is absolutely daunting. Despite the current 20mph speed limits being in place, I can foresee the real possibility of accidents occurring.”

Llanfairfechan Town Council also objected to the proposals on the basis of the plans being outside the local settlement area.

A statement reads: “This site sits outside the settlement area of the current local development plan. As such, the proposed development does not meet the need to provide housing that is within the village envelope and fully accessible to all age groups. The Town Council have also raised their own concerns about this site being close to the Carneddau and in an area that has sites of archaeological interest. As a result, the Town Council do not support any change to the settlement boundary that takes housing higher into the upper village and suggests this is not a sustainable site for a development of this size.”

The planning committee will meet to debate the matter on Thursday 28 November.

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