Southend Council has received plans by applicant Mitchell Nunn to overhaul the offices above the Tool-Line shop, in London Road, into a house of multiple occupancy with 12 bedrooms.
The plans come amid a rising trend of applications for HMOs in Westcliff, with councillor Ron Woodley previously claiming increased numbers of bedsits could create a “no-go zone” in the area.
The offices – Above Tool-Line on 482 to 486 London Road (Image: Michael Robinson)
James Courtenay, leader of Southend’s Conservative Group and councillor for Chalkwell ward, expressed concern the new homes will put more strain on the council’s services.
He said: “Turning it into residential is not necessarily bad, the problem with HMOs is it’s a lot of homes being created, where do the cars go? Where does the waste go?
“A large HMO on a main road where there isn’t as much space makes me worry about fly-tipping and parking pressures.
“Therefore, I’m sceptical of something like that and would like the planning committee to scrutinise that closely before granting permission.
“If they’ve considered the parking appropriately, that’s fine, but 12 separate properties, my starting point is it would be like an extra 12 parking spaces.”
He added the street the HMO will occupy already struggles with rubbish bags being raided by foxes and worries this will create a greater mess in the area.
“It’s why planning need to view it appropriately to make sure our services can deal with the increased demand,” Mr Courtenay added.
“We see it on London Road, there’s an awful lot of rubbish bags already put out, foxes come along, and that already causes a lot of mess.”
Last year, Southend Council threw out plans for the old Anchor Hotel, in Cobham Road, Westcliff to be transformed into a 15-bed HMO.
An appeal has since been launched by applicant, Ben Adler, to get this decision overturned.
Meanwhile, an application to turn 307 Hamlet Court Road into an eight-bedroom HMO with accommodation in the loft space and in a single storey rear extension was refused by the council in November 2023.