HMO plans for former pub and hotel approved despite opposition from councillors

Plans to convert a former pub and hotel on the outskirts of town into a house in multiple occupation (HMO) have been given the go ahead.

The proposals for the former Soul Suite and Albion Hotel in Pen y Bryn include converting the three storeys into 11 bedrooms.

This includes four bedrooms on the ground floor, along with a living / dining room and toilet and shower facilities. A further three bedrooms and a communal kitchen area would be on the second floor and four bedrooms with en suite facilities on the third floor.

Similar plans for the property were refused under delegated powers by the council’s chief housing officer last year. However the revised plans had been recommended for approval with planning committee members told that “all boxes had been ticked.”

However there were attempts to reject the plans from some councillors, who called for better quality accommodation to be provided in Wrexham and questioned whether the building could be turned into apartments.

Offa councillor Alun Jenkins said he was surprised to see the application recommended for approval having seen similar for the building refused before Christmas.

He said: “Looking through the plans I can only see two changes, it is still a HMO over three storeys and for 11 residents and not 22 in double rooms. The other change is the extend the amenity area, there are no other changes at all.

“This is an important building in the regeneration area. The building is a fine building in a lovely location and would surely lend itself to regeneration into high quality flats with the retention of commercial use on the ground floor.

“We have spent a lot of time in the Pen y Bryn and Bridge Street areas trying to regenerate and encourage high quality development. We have started to achieve that but there is a danger that some of the proposals are contrary to that regeneration plan.”

Cllr Jenkins added that the application should be refused again on the same grounds as it was in October 2019.

However an agent speaking on behalf of the applicants said the ground floor commercial use had been advertised for over two years and there had been “no interest since then with selling or letting the property.”

He added that it was felt the building “as a whole is suited to residential HMO accommodation” and that even with the change of use of the property, the number of HMOs in the area falls below the 10 per cent threshold.

There was an attempt to amend the officer’s recommendation for approval, with councillor Bryan Apsley arguing that the proposals should be refused due to going against the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act and because of the lack of amenity space and bike storage.

Mr Williams warned that the council would be likely to lose should the applicant launch an appeal, stating: “They’ve ticked the boxes.

“You can use as a reason for a refusal but the applicants will say they have met the guidelines and it will be allowed. It might be that they put in an application for a rewards of costs as it is unreasonable for this committee to be ignoring guidelines.

Cllr Apsley said: “My job is not to think what the inspector is going to say.

“I am not an expert on the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act, but this doesn’t enhance people’s living standards by being cramped in these facilities.”

But councillor Dana Davies said she had “no option” to move the recommendation whether she “liked it or not.”

She added: “The preference of this council is quality accomodation and looking at the report and at every single policy I am disappointed
that there is nothing to support what we need in Wrexham, which is quality accommodation and we need to change that.”

The amendment to refuse the plans was lost with a majority voting against. Planning permission was granted with seven councillors voting in favour of the development and six voting against. Two councillors abstained from the vote.