Refusal of Wrexham HMO plans appealed despite council saying there are too many in the area

An appeal has been launched after plans to create shared housing for six people in Wrexham were thrown out.

The bid to have the decision reversed comes despite the local authority saying it would lead to there being too many houses in multiple occupation (HM0s) on the same street in the Hightown area.

Wrexham Council has previously published guidance which states HMOs should make up no more than ten per cent of the homes within a 50 metre radius of an application site.

It refused the proposals for a property on Beechley Road, near the town centre, because there are already two shared housing units either side, with a total of six in the immediate vicinity.

Chief planning officer Lawrence Isted said it would result in HMOs representing nearly 13 per cent of the houses in the surrounding area, as well as causing parking problems.

Residents living on the street previously held a protest after claiming the amount of bedsits was creating issues with traffic and fly tipping.

Darren Evans and Chris Tye, who are behind the scheme, have now appealed to planning inspectors appointed by the Welsh Government after disputing the council’s conclusions.

In a statement outlining their reasons for wanting to have the outcome overturned, they said: “We are aware of the number of HMOs currently in that area however, as per the advice given to us prior to our application by the local planning authority, we agree that one more would only take the figure slightly over ten per cent to 13 per cent.

“Our present HMOs have all been renovated to an excellent standard and are all well managed, providing much needed affordable housing which we would maintain with this one.

“The property is already in good condition; therefore, alterations would be minimal, keeping the house in character with the area.

“The property currently has three bedrooms and the maximum number of proposed tenants would be six; therefore, the maximum parking provision would not be altered.

“In our experience with HMOs we find that tenants rarely own a car anyway and with the close proximity of the house to the town centre, along with the regular bus service which passes through that area, (it) means a car is not usually required.”

HMOS were recently highlighted as a possible contributing factor following a coronavirus outbreak among staff at the Rowan Foods factory on Wrexham Industrial Estate.

Welsh Health Minister Vaughan Gething said he was “genuinely concerned” about the living conditions of low paid workers who rent rooms in shared houses.

The minister acknowledged using communal bathroom, toilet and kitchen facilities could potentially aid the spread of the virus.

The appeal will be decided by the Planning Inspectorate at a later date.

By Liam Randall – BBC Local Democracy Reporter