Plans for apartment block across from railway station scaled back after concerns it was too tall

Plans for a four-storey apartment block have been scaled back after concerns were raised about the height of the building.

Yew Tree Developments plan a 35-flat development on land off Church Street in Westhoughton, across from the town’s railway station. The site, known as Stots Pot Yard, was previously used by a fencing company for the manufacturer of timber fences and gates.

The developer plans to demolish the existing buildings and build a 3.5 storey building, comprising of 35 apartments and 18 car park spaces. A design and access statement lodged with Bolton Council states that pre-application discussion with planners led to concerns about the height of the building, which was originally set to be four-storeys.

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The statement, said: “The applicant has utilised the pre-application consultation process to obtain Bolton Council’s feedback on the proposed development.

“The principle of residential development was accepted by the council, however there were some concerns raised regarding the scheme, being the impact of a four storey building to the street scene, the interface distances to surrounding properties and use and amount of amenity space.

“The scheme has been amended to address the concerns. Overall, due to the amendments made to the proposed scheme, it is felt that the dominance of the new building has been significantly subdued and now represents an enhancement to the frontage of Church Street.”

The proposed block of flat now consists of 35 apartments, 19 two-beds and 16 one-bed apartments in a 3.5 storey building. The building footprint has been reduced and the amenity space increased. Planners at Bolton Council will consider the