The dairy and cattle farm yard once used by East Cambs council leader James Palmer can now be demolished and replaced with two homes.
The council has recommended for approval his plans to build two bungalows on the site which is at the rear of his Sand Street home.
The application went before the planning committee yesterday with officers’ recommending it should be approved.
The committee was told the milk business closed in April this year but cattle have not used the building since 1997.
Cllr Palmer told the committee that retaining or developing the old buildings was not practical.
His agent said they did little to “enhance the setting of the listed building and conservation area”.
The parish council had no concerns with the application, the committee was told, and the council’s conservation officer said a revised design “had improved the appearance of the proposal”.
Officers noted the loss of an employment site but said if business use was retained it could have an “adverse impact” on the residential nature of the area and the conservation area. Homes, in this instance, were the preferred option.
Cllr Palmer’s agent said the bungalows to be built there would be “traditionally designed, reminiscent of small almshouses with features found in the local vernacular”.
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