Town councillors have raised concerns over detailed plans to build five houses on scrubland in Kenilworth.

A reserved matters application for four terraced houses and a detached home on Warwick Road have been submitted to Warwick District Council, after outline planning permission was approved in 2019.

The proposal says the site used to have five homes on it - referred to as 'Railing Row' - until they were demolished in the late 1970's.

It said the intention had always been to replace the homes, but this has never happened. The site is now used to store vehicles from the neighbouring properties.

"Whilst a full re-development of 'Railing Row' may no longer be appropriate to the modern character of Kenilworth, proposal to build five houses in a designated residential area is," the application said. 

"The proposal is for a design that is sympathetic to the history of the environment."

(Image via planning application / google.maps)

However, at the last Kenilworth Town Council planning meeting members raised a number of concerns around the development.

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Cllr John Dearing said: "These houses are very, very small. 

"For houses they are around 60 square metres for total living area, and I think the normal two bed terraced house in Kenilworth is around 75-80. I don't think they are breaking any rules, but these are very small." 

He added: "They are tiddly houses. They are just over three metres wide inside."

While councillors did not object to the application, they did endorse concerns raised by Warwickshire County Council around parking and bin storage.

Cllr Kate Dickson said: "I am just aware that there are quite a few developments that are in quite close proximity along Warwick Road and they will all be using the same areas for overflow parking."

Cllr Rob Barry added: "I am slightly disappointed that their sustainability nod in the application is only for passive solar design which basically means they are not really doing anything aside from making sure some light gets into the building. 

"They are not taking any active measures."

Members also questioned measurements submitted for the access road.

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