Plan to demolish and replace Bournemouth petrol station refused

Applicant EG sought permission for the redevelopment of the Bath Road site having seen a previous scheme rejected by council planners and dismissed on appeal.

However, BCP Council's planning department has rejected the second scheme under delegated powers.

The applicant claimed the new design in the latest plan took into account concerns raised over the dismissed proposal.

The planning application included the demolition of the existing petrol station and linked kiosk, replacing them with a new building with an increase in parking spaces from two to five and a new disability parking bay.

A report by a BCP Council planning officer said the proposal would see the ancillary store increase in space by 500 per cent, while the number of petrol pumps would reduce from 10 to six.

The officer said: "Plans propose a building almost four times as big as the existing (twice as long and twice as deep).

"The retail area is growing from 37 square metres to 187 square metres (and back of house from to 16 square metres to 57 square metres). The previous case dismissed at appeal proposed a much smaller extension to the existing building.

"Simultaneous to the proposed enlargement, plans propose a reduction in the number of petrol pumps from 10 (five double-sided) to six (two double-sided and two single-sided)."

They added: "If the site is needed as a petrol filling station, it is not clear why such a significant portion of the site is being given increasingly to food retail and associated parking, in a layout that will further inhibit the operation of the petrol filling station function." The application was rejected due to issues with the impact on the East Cliff Conservation Area, which the site borders, and highway safety concerns.

The petrol station in Bath Road, Bournemouth

Both these factors outweigh the benefits to the local economy, the officer said.

"The poor internal site layout and resulting impacts on the free flow of traffic on Bath Road could cause additional danger and inconvenience to other highway users," the report added.

As reported, residents living near the petrol station site claimed it being open 24/7 attracted badly behaved people, causing disturbance and crime.

An Amberley Court resident, who objected to the scheme, said: “The current filling station attracts groups of drug dealers during the night who gather and make a lot of noise, then frequent the grounds of Amberley Court creating nuisance, noise and potential danger for the residents.”

Others objecting to the application made similar claims, alleging the proposed shop would attract drunken people in the early hours.