Planning permission has finally been given for the conversion of the garden spaces of two dwellings in The Gardens, into extra car parking spaces for the Haberdashers' Monmouth School for Girls (HMSG).

The application for no's 1 and 2, The Gardens was originally proposed in 2011 and met with fierce opposition by residents, who opposed the plans on the grounds it would change the residential nature of the area and create "a large and clearly visible eyesore."

Although the ground was incorporated within the boundary of HMSG, Monmouth Town Council (MTC) recommended refusal as they considered the car park inappropriate within a predominately residential area and "may cause disturbance to the adjoining neighbours."

Monmouth's Civic Society believed that the plans "would represent piecemeal and creeping removal of gardens, destroying the green environment which enhances the town, providing a refuge for wildlife and the ability of the land to absorb rainfall."

Monmouthshire County Council's (MCC) planning committee also refused the plans against the recommendation of their planning officer in June 2011 as they felt "the proposed extension of the school car park into the gardens of 1 and 3 would present an engineered incursion into an attractive green space that is characteristic of this suburban setting."

A revised application was submitted in December 2011, taking into account the concerns raised in the first application process and revised the layout with a reduced number of car parking spaces. Landscaping proposals were introduced, designed specifically to address the sole reason for refusal.

MTC recommended refusal for the second time on the grounds of intrusion into a residential area for business use and MCC again resolved to refuse permission against their planning officer's recommendation for approval, but did not give any reasons for refusal.

For the full story, see this week's Monmouthshire Beacon (8th August 2012).