THE owner of a multi-million-pound home within the Coastal National Park will not be able to install a metal pergola on their roof terrace, after an appeal was dismissed by the Environment Minister.
Deputy Jonathan Renouf agreed with a Planning inspector that adding the feature to the art-deco La Coupe House, which sits above La Saie in St Martin, would harm the surrounding area and make the house ‘bulkier and taller’.
Plans to install an ‘enclosable rooftop pergola’ on the home, which was sold by Ransom’s Garden Centre director Sarah Ransom in 2014 for £12.3 million, were initially rejected last year due to the ‘increased visual impact on the landscape, which would therefore be harmful to the Coastal National Park’.
An appeal against that decision was lodged by Godel Architects, who were acting on behalf of the applicant, Adam Mackie.
They argued that the pergola would not ‘disproportionately increase the size of the dwelling in terms of floorspace, building footprint or visual impact’, adding that the proposals were ‘subservient to the existing building’.
However, Deputy Renouf has accepted the recommendation of independent Planning inspector Philip Staddon, who said that the appeal should be dismissed.
A decision notice published on the Planning section of the government’s website says: ‘The minister accepted and agreed with the findings, recommendations and reasoning of the independent Planning inspector. The application fails to identify any evidenced public benefit of the proposal that would outweigh the harm caused by it.’
The inspector’s report said that the pergola ‘would make the house appear bulkier and taller’. Mr Staddon’s report continues: ‘While I note the submissions about the lightweight structure, it would be enclosed on all sides by glazed panels and would contain a roof structure over much of its area, such that it would appear as an additional storey and would further intrude into views within the protected coastal area, including from the sea.
‘By increasing the bulk and height of the main part of an already large and prominent building, it would not protect or improve landscape and seascape character.’
The report later adds: ‘Making this large and prominent modern building appear bulkier and taller, with an effective additional top tier of accommodation, would cause some harm to the Coastal National Park’s purposes and its special qualities.’
