Plans to build a house at the entrance to an imposing Edwardian mansion in Livingston have been thrown out by the Scottish Government.
Mr W. Graham had appealed against the rejection of his proposals by West Lothian Council, but a Reporter appointed by the Division of Planning and Environmental Appeals said the new house would be “unacceptable tandem development” which has to be resisted.
Tandem development is a planning term to describe the infilling of large gardens or grounds of larger homes with new housing.
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The Reporter, Elspeth Cook, acknowledged that there has been building around the historic Dechmont House, built in 1915 in Deans, but writing in her judgement she said: “Contemporary housing development is mostly placed to the north of the house and is characterised by large detached dwellings set within large plots with front gardens facing onto the street. As a result the south facing open aspect from Dechmont House towards the surrounding countryside is left unimpeded.”
The southern view from the house - built to replace a Victorian mock Gothic style home of one of the Scotland’s shale oil pioneers- remains open with uninterrupted views to Dechmont Law.
The planned new home , a chalet style of one and half storey, was to be built just inside the entrance gates at the foot of an imposing driveway which sweeps up to the house from the west.
In the initial application which went before West Lothian’s Development Management Committee in June, Colin Hardie, an agent for the applicant told the committee that Dechmont House had had no real frontage onto Woodlands Park in the last 40 years, and that the western elevation is “quite plain”.
He added at the time: “ Where Dechmont House is stellar in its view to the community is its south elevation which looks out over parkland, and up to Dechmont Law.”
Mrs Cook disagreed with this assertion and wrote: “As I consider the appeal site to be part of the front garden of Dechmont House I have some concerns regarding the effects of the elements of the development that would be placed in advance of the western elevation of the house e.g. the parking area and boundary fences. I find these would interfere with the existing mature trees and the view towards the entrance to the house from the shared access. This would result in an adverse visual effect on the approach to the existing house.”
She also said that the orientation of the planned house would impose on other, newer, homes in Woodlands Park and they would require more screening.
Mrs Cook also doubted whether the new home could be built without damaging root systems or the loss of trees in the grounds of Dechmont House. She pointed out that the applicant’s assertion that the ground was level was not so, as she had discovered on a site visit.
Speaking at the June meeting of the DMC, Councillor Stuart Borrowman, the chair of the DMC acknowledged that Dechmont House, built in the Arts and Crafts architectural style of the Edwardian era, was not a listed building , but added: "It must be one of the most attractive unlisted dwellings in West Lothian. I do think this would be poor town planning were we to allow this.”
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