Architect told to tear down room built on grounds of £900,000 mansion

Architect, 47, is told to tear down luxury garden room he built as a gym on the grounds of his £900,000 mansion after neighbours in exclusive estate said it would ‘overshadow their properties’

• Graeme Andrew, 47, needed retrospective planning permission for the unit 
• He built the luxury garden room behind his house in Kilmacolm, Renfrewshire
• Complaints said it created noise issues and overshadowed other properties 
• A committee rejected the building’s retrospective planning permission 
• Mr Andrew now awaiting the judgement of a government reporter on the issue  

An architect has been told to tear down the luxury garden room he built to use as a gym in the grounds of his £900,000 mansion.

Graeme Andrew, 47, needed retrospective planning permission for the glass-fronted unit on land behind his home in Kilmacolm, Renfrewshire.

Planning permission was originally granted but after the building was moved closer to the boundary fence during construction the council needed to offer permission again. 

But neighbours on his exclusive estate launched a flurry of complaints, saying it detracted from the area and did not integrate with surrounding developments.

It was also claimed there were noise and privacy issues and that it overshadowed properties.

Officials from Inverclyde Council inspected the structure and recommended it be given retrospective planning permission. This was rejected by a committee.

Graeme Andrew, 47, needed retrospective planning permission for the glass-fronted unit (pictured) on land behind his home in Kilmacolm, Renfrewshire

Mr Andrew has now turned to the Scottish Government in a desperate bid to save the building.

An appeal document said: ‘We seek retrospective planning permission for a garden room located on the rear private side of the substantial garden grounds.’

The building was described in the document as featuring ‘full height timber framed windows, dark stained timber cladding, a delicate steel structure and a dark single ply rubber membrane roof’.

It said it was ‘durable and high quality’ that ‘will be discrete against shrubbery and the woodland edges of the garden setting as it matures’.

The document added: ‘The application is an application for full planning permission and the decision process should be made on that basis and not on the basis of “permitted development” guidance.

‘However we note that the building would fall within “permitted development” guidance if it was positioned only 400mm south of where it is yet look exactly the same from all aspects around the locality.’

Mr Andrew has now turned to the Scottish Government in a desperate bid to save the building (pictured at night)

It blasted the committee for ignoring ‘the planning merits of the case’ and instead being swayed by ‘unjustified and irrelevant political matters originated by a resident objector’.  

‘The site is allocated for residential purposes in the Inverclyde Council’s local plan and the site is not further complicated by any other designations,’ it added.

‘There are no environmental designations affecting the location and the site is not a listed building and is not within a conservation area.’

Rejecting his application, Inverclyde Council said: ‘The detached garden room contradicts Local Plan Policy 1 “Creating Successful Places – Safe and Pleasant”, as the garden room’s unexpected domineering position on the skyline detracts from the character of the area and does not integrate well with the surrounding development.’

A government reporter will make a decision in due course. 

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