Differing views by The Planning Inspectorate on a pair of new fences on opposite sides of the road are to be queried by South Holland District Council.
The fences were put up last year by neighbours in Osier Road and Rutland Close in Spalding. The council rejected retrospective planning applications, telling both applicants that their fence was “an incongruous form of development by virtue of its height and location.
It added: “Whilst there is considered to be no impact on neighbour amenity or loss of light, the fence is seen to be at odds with the open-plan nature of the surrounding area.”
However, appeal decisions made by two independent planning inspectors within a few days of each other saw the council’s decision over 8 Osier Road upheld and its ruling over 1 Rutland Close dismissed.
It left the owner of the Osier Road property, Agneszka Lukaszewicz, bemused over why the two cases had been treated differently.
As part of the planning consent, Rutland Close resident Peter Featherstone has agreed to paint his fence a darker colour – sage.
Coun Roger Gambba-Jones, chairman of the district council’s planning committee, says the local authority will be writing to The Planning Inspectorate for clarification on why the inspectors arrived at different views.
He said: “Personally, I don’t agree with the view of the second planning inspector [the Rutland Close fence] because what has been done has changed the character of that location.
“It’s very frustrating to have addressed the concerns of residents only for an inspector to take a completely opposite view.
“The problem is you have to look at the before and after. The before was open plan which was how the estate was designed with soft planting and open aspect, to use the jargon.
“What they have done, by putting up a high fence, is to change significantly the look of that area. It closes down the visual aspect of those corners significantly.”
When The Voice first reported on the issue last month, several Facebook users said they could see little wrong with either fence and claimed the residents’ efforts to keep their property and neighbourhood looking neat should be welcomed.
“I understand the viewpoint of residents who are trying to manage their particular property but soft planting achieves a similar thing,” said Coun Gambba-Jones. “People have to take responsibility and think outside their own little bubble.”
