Fresh plans to convert north Northumberland farm site

Fresh plans to convert a farm on the north Northumberland coast into housing have been lodged with the county council.
Looking up towards Mount Pleasant Farm from the bottom of the hill out of Alnmouth.Looking up towards Mount Pleasant Farm from the bottom of the hill out of Alnmouth.
Looking up towards Mount Pleasant Farm from the bottom of the hill out of Alnmouth.

Last August, a scheme was submitted to replace ‘unsightly’ agricultural buildings with five new homes in the countryside outside Alnmouth.

But the outline application for the development, at Mount Pleasant Farm off the Foxton Road, was later withdrawn by the applicant, Mrs S Murray.

The access into Mount Pleasant Farm off Foxton Road.The access into Mount Pleasant Farm off Foxton Road.
The access into Mount Pleasant Farm off Foxton Road.
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The site consists of a farmhouse and other buildings accessed by a private road off the route heading north out of the seaside village.

The new bid is now seeking full planning permission, but the number of homes has been reduced to three.

The latest planning statement explains: ‘As a result of an objection from the AONB (area of outstanding natural beauty) Partnership, the applicant withdrew their application and reconsidered the design and justification.’

The new scheme ‘is identical in all respects’ to a permission granted in 2011, which has since lapsed, for the demolition of the agricultural buildings, change of use and construction of three holiday accommodation cottages.

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Addressing the changes from the 2018 application, the report says: ‘As the AONB Partnership objected to an earlier application, further consideration has been given to the overall justification and design.

‘The applicant accepts that the location of the site is sensitive, but given that the site is already developed and includes a number of buildings, some of which are unsightly, it is considered that a proposal to redevelop the site could in fact enhance the landscape of the AONB.

‘The applicant has reduced the scale, size and massing of the development compared to the earlier scheme.

‘The number of units has been reduced from five to three and the height of the buildings has been reduced.’

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It later adds: ‘The application site is not open countryside as such, the proposals are positioned wholly within the footprint of existing buildings on the site and would have no greater impact on the character of the AONB than the existing buildings.’

There are two two-bedroom and one three-bedroom units proposed in a single L-shaped block, only half of which would be two storeys and which would be constructed of natural stone to ‘reflect the traditional form of the surrounding area’.

Ben O'Connell, Local Democracy Reporting Service