DEVELOPERS have applied to add two storeys to a house in a scheme that it says will ‘never happen’.

Fortitudo has submitted a prior approval application to add two floors to a house in Pearce Avenue, Poole.

This house is the same house that the developer plans to demolish, replacing it with three homes each expected to fetch up to £9.25million.

Chief executive of Fortitudo, Richard Carr, said the new application was a ‘justification move on the chess board’.

Bournemouth Echo: CGI showing the three proposed homes in Pearce Avenue, Lilliput

“We put a PD [permitted development] application in just to demonstrate to the planners that the existing property could go up two floors in any case, to justify the height of our new buildings,” he said.

“It will never happen, but what it does, when it is passed in 56 days, it gives an extant permission to increase the height of that property by two storeys which would be substantially higher than what we are proposing.”

The previous application, which is yet to be determined, was met with 65 objections from neighbours, who said it would be overdevelopment, due to the size and density of the proposed buildings.

Residents said the buildings would ‘dominate’ the road and ‘dwarf’ the surrounding homes.

Mr Carr said: “I think that the planning officer has accepted the principle of three properties, I think there is still some debate over the density of the properties, or the size of the properties, but we are working with them on that.

“I think generally we are moving in the right direction.”

Bournemouth Echo: The amended proposed three homes, with the outline of the current property (purple outline) and the

Amended plans for the three homes have been submitted to the previous scheme, after council officers said the proposal ‘would not be acceptable in its present form’.

Officers recommended reducing the width, height and depth of the proposed homes to ‘significantly’ reduce their massing.

A cover letter added to the amendments to the scheme, however, said the height of the proposed buildings would stay as four storey.

Instead, developers have provided ‘setbacks from the adjoining neighbours’.

It said: “This reduces the impact on the neighbouring properties and gives each property a unique appearance and profile.”

This letter references the new prior approval application, saying that planning law: “confirms that the enlargement of a dwelling house by construction of two additional storeys is permitted development which does not require express planning permission, subject to meeting a number of criteria.”

“This includes seeking the prior approval of the local planning authority, which can consider the proposal in a very limited number of ways.”

Both applications are awaiting decisions from BCP Council.