Greenbelt holiday lodges cause environmental impact concerns and fears they will become permanent homes
A plan for holiday lodges in the green belt near Colne has prompted concerns including the impact on a nearby lake, wildlife and a footpath, and the buildings becoming permanent homes rather than tourist accommodation.
Applicant Scott Edmondson has submitted the plan for three holiday lodges with parking at Whitemoor View, Red Lane, Colne, to Pendle Council. The site is near Foulridge, which has three reservoirs and is known for bird-life. The reservoirs were built to supply the Leeds and Liverpool Canal. Red Lane is to the south of Foulridge Lower Reservoir, also called Lake Burwain.
A report for Pendle councillors says the Whitemoor View site is in open green belt countryside with a footpath on the south side. Two of the existing buildings were used for storage in the past. The site is next to another outbuilding which already has planning permission as a holiday cottage.
Mr Edmondson is working with agent Frankie Dryden-Fay of LARK Architects from Cross Hills, Keighley. A statement supporting the plan reads: “The applicant wishes to replace the two existing storage buildings with three low-rise, contemporary holiday lodges.
They will operate alongside the existing holiday let. The purpose is to diversify the existing holiday let business and provide additional accommodation for visitors to the Pendle district.” In planning, C3 is a class for residential use, including holiday and permanent homes. There are other classes too, such as C1 for hotels and guest houses.
The statement adds: “A council officer requested a planning statement because the lodges are classed as ‘C3’ dwellings. It must be stressed that the applicant has no intention, at this stage, to use the lodges other than for short-term holiday letting accommodation.”
But a number of objections have been made to Pendle Council, along with one comment welcoming the tourism idea but also making suggestions. Concerns include the appearance of the lodges and impact on the landscape and the community in Foulridge. One objector said no impact assessment has been made about the visual effect of the lodges when seen from the other side of the lake.
In other comments, Colne Town Council has no objections but has asked for sympathetic building materials to be used, so the lodges reflect local architecture.
Lancashire County Council has no objections but said there is limited forward visibility along a track with no passing places, so vehicles meeting each other would need to reverse. There is enough car parking space at the site itself but the manoeuvring area is not big enough and the access immediately off Red Lane should be widened, the county council believes.
Pendle planning officers are advising borough councillors to grant approval with conditions, including keeping the lodges for holiday use only. Other recommended conditions cover building materials, bio-diversity, landscaping and lighting.
Overall, planning officers believe the proposals are acceptable. They say the Whitemoor View site has been used for storage previously and there is no evidence that holiday accommodation, including night time activity, would harm nature at the site or wildlife areas nearby. The new lodges would be improvements on the current storage buildings, officers believe.
Some other questions raised by the public, such as whether there is a tourism need or the number of previous applications connected to the site, are not relevant ‘material issues’ to planning decisions, officers have added.