A non-descript two-bedroom house on the outskirts of a town’s conservation area could be demolished and replaced with nine flats.
The proposals relate to 1 Brook Dam Lane in Soham, and the couple who own it says an adjoining garage and outbuildings will also go to make way for the homes.
The owners, a couple from Haslingfield, South Cambridgeshire, commissioned Ely Planning Company to design the flats.
An application for the demolition of the house and building the flats has been lodged with East Cambridgeshire District Council.
If agreed the flats will be built in two blocks, the first will be positioned fronting Brook Dam Lane.
The rear block will have an archway access at the front of the site.
“We are proposing a mix of 1- and 2-bedroom apartments on the site,” says the applicant.
“Soham is a very sort after area to live in and small apartments of this size and nature are not easily available. “The fact there is also going to be a new train station constructed and finished in 2021 close to the site puts these open market apartments in a highly sustainable location.”
Ely Planning say the flats will provide “nine modest and practical apartments which are always in huge demand for first time buyers and young families / professionals in the area.
“This coupled up with the ideal location and contemporary design would make them highly desirable.”
Ely Planning says: “Unlike some of these large developments that are on the outer regions of Soham this site lies within the heart of the town and in a prime location
“The current building on the site has very little architectural merit and does not contribute or enhance the existing conservation area.
“There have been many additions made to the original dwelling and overall, the existing dwelling is in a poor state of repair,”
Building flats will make “better use of the site and provide highly sustainable homes for the open market”.
Ely Planning says by only just falling within the outskirts of the conservation area “we feel that our proposals will have little to no impact on the conservation area or any of the closet listed heritage assets”.
The applicants argue there is “a clear precedent set for the developments of this nature with there being a modern apartment block to the front of our site and also adjacent.
“The size, form, materials and detailing have been carefully chosen so that the proposals create a positive contribution to the street scene and conservation area.”
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