New town centre apartments approved for Chorley building that ‘could have been an HMO’

Councillors have backed plans to convert a vacant commercial building on the edge of Chorley town centre into apartments - and praised the developer for resisting the temptation to create a house of multiple occupation (HMO) instead.

The three-storey premises, on Queen’s Road - which was most recently in use as Lynbrook Office Supplies - will see a four-floor extension added as part of the overhaul.

Under the blueprint - which has been approved by Chorley Council’s planning committee - 16, self-contained, two-bedroomed apartments will be developed.

Committee members noted the property’s HMO potential - an accommodation type they have recently criticised for providing a poor standard of living in some cases. Also known as share houses, HMOs are based around multiple, unrelated individuals living together and sharing facilities such as a kitchen, bathroom and toilet.

Just last month, the cross-party committee rejected two HMO applications amid concerns about the size of the rooms in one and the tenants being attracted to the other, which was already in operation.

However, councillors lined up to laud the applicant for the Queen’s Road building, Mukhtiar Singh Bains, for opting to go down a different route.

Committee member Cllr Alex Hilton - who is also the council’s cabinet member for planning - said: “This could have easily been turned into an HMO, but [it] is actually being turned into self-contained flats - which is exactly what we need [in Chorley].”

His committee colleague, Craige Southern, echoed his appreciation for the nature of the proposed conversion.

“This is exactly what we want - small, individual flats, self-contained…where there's a bit of pride put in there [and] people have got some sort of belonging,” Cllr Southern said.

Three objections were lodged from members of the public, whose concerns included the claimed "disproportionate scale and density” of a design that would be “out of keeping with the character of the area”.

However, according to a report by town hall planners, the extension - which will “wrap around” the western side of the building - will fill a “vacant and undeveloped gap” and offer “a significant visual improvement” in the process.

Although “significant amounts of glazing” will feature in the more modern add-on, “it is not considered that this would appear out of place within the context of the immediate locality where neighbouring buildings are of varied design, size and scale”, the document notes. The extension will also sit behind the existing gables.

Committee member Katie Wilkie said the proposal was “absolutely right” for the location.

“It's a bit of a dilapidated area - [and this] will…smarten it up. It says Chorley's vibrant [and got a] good standard of accommodation,” Cllr Wilkie said.

The application was unanimously approved.