Casa demolition plans aim to settle dispute

The Casa Hotel and Restaurant on Elland Road has submitted propsals to Calderdale Council to demolish part of the existing bar and restaurant in the hope it will put an end to the planning wrangle.

The venue was ordered by the Planning Inspectorate that it must take down its three storey extension after losing its planning appeal against Calderdale Council in September 2015.

However, Castelite Limited, Casa’s parent company, appeared in the High Court to challenge the decision and was successful in getting the verdict reviewed in February 2016.

In the new plans, the design and access statement created by independent planning consultant Marilyn Brichard said it is hoped the proposals will satisfy all parties.

“The Inspector’s decision following the Inquiry is still a material factor in considering how to take the situation forward.

“In that decision the Inspector suggested that enough time should be allowed for the appellants to advance an alternative scheme for consideration.

“The situation is difficult for both the Council and for the Casa business and so in order to address the concerns of the Inquiry Inspector and those of Calderdale councillors and officers, a wide-ranging revision of the proposals for the whole site has been undertaken.”

The new proposal will see the older and much altered parts of the buildings removed and moved into three storey extension that was part of the planning inquiry.

The developers are also proposing to used revised materials palette and how the building will appear in the surrounding landscape.

Instead of being a stark white building set against trees, the building will have has tones of cream and brown

“The proposed scheme now has the benefit of a comprehensive landscaping scheme which will enclose the building and restore some of the setting lost by the works that have taken place,” said consultant “Marilyn Brichard.

“The overall reduction in footprint of the ground floor of the building will allow for major improvements in the setting.”

The Planning Inspector Ahsan Ghafoor ruled in favour of the Council and gave the Casa owners nine months to take down the extension.

The ruling was also made the development would have on greenbelt land and would appear ‘out-of-keeping with the host building and the rural qualities of the surrounding countryside’.

The new proposals will now be considered by Calderdale Council.

Richard Seaman, Calderdale Council’s Planning Service Lead, said: “The Planning Inspectorate has not yet given us a new inquiry date. In the meantime, the applicant is entitled to submit a revised application in an effort to address the planning issues presented by the development.

“The Council’s planning officers will be assessing the application during the coming weeks and will make a recommendation to our Planning Committee in due course.”