Meeting called after plans submitted for 10-bedroom HMO in Rushden
Rushden residents are being invited to a meeting tonight (September 2) to have their say on plans for a new HMO in Higham Road, Rushden.
Plans were submitted to convert the former retail and office premises into a house in multiple occupation (HMO) in July, with North Northants Council currently assessing its suitability.
If approved, the HMO would consist of 10 bedrooms, each with an en-suite bathroom and with two communal kitchen and dining rooms shared among residents.
A planning document reads: “The proposal makes efficient use of the existing building footprint, avoiding unnecessary extensions while optimising the available internal space.”
While the applicant, Rod Keith, says the conversion would ’preserve the established character of Higham Road and will not appear visually intrusive’, there has been pushback on the plans, with a meeting scheduled to take place this evening.
One commenter said the HMO in Rushden could bring ‘potentially noisy and undesirable people’ to the ‘pleasant’ area.
An objection reads: “The notification of this planning application is unacceptable.
“There are no notices in the street for passers-by, and there has been no notification posted to local residents, other than the immediate residents.
"Although the 54 page parking survey concludes that there is sufficient local parking, the reality is that there will be significant impact to residents in Higham Road.
“Higham Road is a pleasant, if not busy, area. No one wants a house of multiple occupancy full of potentially noisy and undesirable people who will fundamentally change the character of this road.”
The meeting, to be held at the Bowls Club in Northampton Road, Rushden at 6.30pm is an opportunity for residents to discuss the proposal which would see the building formerly used by Three Counties Water turned into living accommodation.
The application’s parking survey was conducted within a 200m walk from the building, where it was concluded that there was an overall parking stress level of 55.6 per cent, which the applicant notes is ‘significantly below’ the commonly applied 85 per cent parking stress threshold.
Plans suggest there will be ‘at least three’ off-street parking spaces within the site.
The parking survey reads: “In reality, it would be reasonable to expect car ownership among HMO occupiers to be lower than a simple one-car-per-bedroom assumption.
"HMO accommodation often caters for single-person households, younger residents, those on lower incomes, and residents seeking flexible or more affordable accommodation.
"Wider HMO guidance recognises that conversion to HMO use does not automatically result in increased parking demand and that HMOs can have lower levels of car ownership than traditional family housing.”
The full application can be found online here or by searching 26/02126/FUL on the North Northants Council planning portal.