Revised plans unveiled for new Helensburgh care home

Developers Simply UK withdrew their original plans for the facility at the former council depot site earlier this week, after it attracted fierce opposition from Helensburgh Community Council and neighbouring residents.

But Argyll and Bute Council confirmed that they were working with the company on a new design – and revised details now been submitted to the authority’s planning department.

According to a planning and access statement by DTA Chartered Architects, some parts of the building will still have four storeys.

The statement says concerns expressed by neighbours that the new building would diminish views of the town, or the nearby war memorial in the park, are unfounded.

Bars, a beauty salon and what is described as top class food all figure in the revised plans, as per the original application.

A decision is expected from the council by early September and public comments can now be made on the new design.

The architects' statement says: “The proposal has been designed to sit lower than the existing dwellings on Prince Albert Terrace to create a natural ‘step down’ in height towards the park.

“To consider that the proposal would create a dominant addition to the skyline cannot be sustained given that the immediately adjacent residences on Prince Albert Terrace will remain the tallest and most dominant building on the skyline.

“Therefore, the proposals do not adversely change the experience already in place by the existing historical built surroundings in this regard.

“The massing, scale and height of the proposal can therefore not be considered to impact on the monument’s open parkland setting given it is small in all regards to the existing block at Prince Albert Terrace.

“The application proposal will not interrupt views of or to the monument nor would it affect one’s ability to understand and appreciate the historic asset contained within the walled garden setting.

“We feel that it has been demonstrated that the proposal does not have an adverse impact on the historical asset in the factors set out in ‘Managing Change in The Historic Environment’ guidelines.”

The proposals add that the care home is planned to consist of 64 bedrooms over two blocks in an L-shape arrangement, with the northern block rising to four storeys.

The southern block is smaller in height and mass to address concerns over the impact on the adjacent Birch Cottages sheltered housing facility, which was also felt to be threatened by the previous plans.

The statement added: “The neighbouring Birch Cottages is a single storey building under a pitched roof, with the cottage flats being level with the proposal’s lower ground floor.

“At the lower ground floor, our proposal has no windows to prevent direct over-looking issues with Birch Cottages.

“The proposal does not impact upon the existing surrounding properties, namely Birch Cottages and Prince Albert Terrace.”

While Argyll and Bute Council does not generally publish newly-validated plans until the Friday of each week, the new care home plans can be viewed at the authority’s online planning portal under the code number 19/01410/PP.