COUNCILLORS have given Poundland the go ahead to convert the upper floors of its Grade II listed building in The Borough into a dozen flats despite fears it could harm the Farnham Conservation Area.

Waverley’s western planning committee approved the retailer’s plans on Wednesday, March 2 - though not without contention after Farnham Residents’ group chairman John Williamson fiercely objected against the development.

Poundland has not used the upper two storeys of 2-3 The Borough since it acquired the building from previous owners Evitavonni and proposes building nine flats at first-floor level with a further three flats above.

However, despite expressing support in principle for more homes in the town centre, Mr Williamson vehemently opposed the design of the new flats and urged the committee to reject the proposal.

He said: “This is a conservation area. So much more could be done with that building with a good architect and an imaginative scheme. It looks almost industrial to me and I’ve seen far better looking factories than what is being presented this evening.

“It would be a shame to do this to a respected building in Farnham and I think it deserves more. We fight really hard to preserve the centre of Farnham and monstrosities like this should not be allowed.”

Mr Williamson was not alone in criticising Poundland’s scheme, as independent councillor for Farnham Moor Park Andy MacLeod and Farnham Firgrove councillor Sam Pritchard both criticised the proposed flats as “cramped” - the smallest of which being just 474 square feet.

“I think this plan is hideous - it is cramped, the density is not good, there is no green space,” said Mr Pritchard. “If I lived in one of those properties, my grandmother wouldn’t be able to visit because there is no disabled access and there is nowhere for my children to play safely. This is just not a good plan at all.”

But Farnham Weybourne and Badshot Lea councillor Christopher Storey accused his colleagues of “missing the point”.

“We have given permission for quite a number of flats on commercial premises within the vicinity of the town centre recently,” he said.

“They’re not intended for families with lots of children and grannies who need to get up the stairs. They’re really for younger singles or newly married couples who are quite happy to live for a few years in these circumstances and then move on to somewhere that has grass and parking spaces. I think this is a very good use of redundant space.”

Carole Cockburn, member for The Bourne and a founding member of the Farnham Neighbourhood Plan working group, also praised the scheme.

“I think this is absolutely fine,” she said. “Given what Evitavonni did to the building, I think they’re improving much of it and just to see life down some of these alleyways is just going to be so much better.

“We do have to find space for dwellings and I would certainly rather see them on these re-used brownfield sites than on the outskirts of the town.”

Waverley’s senior planning officer Elizabeth Simms also expressed her opinion that the Poundland site represents “the best sort of location for us to target residential development if we possibly can”.

She continued: “This is a brownfield site in a highly sustainable location, it’s making a good use of an existing site, it ticks all the boxes in relation to conservation and preservation of the listed building and it is an opportunity to realise quite a considerable number of units in a way which isn’t in the end particularly harmful to other interests.

“If we can make the best opportunity of this sort of site, it’s obviously taking the pressure off the need to think about other opportunities.”

Swayed by the arguments in favour of the development, councillors ultimately voted seven in favour to just two against Poundland’s scheme.

Construction of the flats will be restricted to between 8am and 6pm Monday to Fridays and 8am and 1pm on Saturdays. No works shall take place on Sundays or bank holidays and Poundland must also submit a Construction Transport Management Plan to Waverley for approval before commencing works.