A PROPOSAL to demolish Old Down House at Swelling Hill, Ropley, and replace it with a larger detached property is to be decided at appeal.

The application was turned down by East Hampshire District Council (EHDC) planners last December on grounds that “the external appearance, scale and massing would be excessive and would not be domestic in scale”.

Furthermore, it was felt to have “an adverse impact on the character and appearance of the area”.

Located outside the settlement policy boundary and within an area identified as countryside where restrictive planning policies apply, the proposal was felt to represent “an unacceptable cumulative addition to the property, which would result in a 201.6 per cent increase over the original floor area”.

In addition, planners felt the proposed enlargement would affect the successful retention of a range of dwellings of varying sizes in an area where new dwellings are not permitted, contrary to local planning policy.

Commenting on the application, while having no objection to the building itself, members of Ropley Parish Council’s planning committee had their expressed concerns over “light spillage and long distance visibility as a result of the glass roof over the atrium and the large area of glass on the west facing aspect of the house”.

The appeal is to be decided by written representation with comment to be sent to The Planning Inspectorate, Room 3N, Temple Quay House, 2 The Square, Temple Quay, Bristol BS1 6PN quoting reference APP/M1710/W/17/3169362 and to arrive no later than April 3.