Plans for three homes next to former Powys pub approved by councillors
Councillors have given the thumbs up to plans for a terrace of three homes in the car park of a former historic Powys pub.
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At a meeting of Powys County Council’s planning committee on Monday, October 14, councillors debated a proposal by Michael Broxton to build three houses next to The Cottage Inn in Montgomery.
The Cottage Inn had been used as a visitor centre for Monty’s Brewery but closed in 2020. In March 2023, Mr Broxton was given planning permission to convert the 18th century pub into a four-bedroom house.
The most recent proposal has been called in front of the planning committee by Montgomery’s Powys county councillor, Jeremy Brignell-Thorp.
Councillor Brignell-Thorpe objected to the proposal because it removed the "thriving pub" as a facility for the community and said there were "only two other venues in the town that serve drinks".
He added that in the new version of the Local Development Plan that is being worked on by the council there will be more housing developments in and around Montgomery but argued that “none of these will have community facilities.”
Councillor Brignell-Thorpe said: “So in this part of Montgomery there will be just housing, nowhere for residents to meet for drinks. This is precisely what the future generations act is trying to protect against and ensure our towns do not become hollowed out dormitories.”
He told councillors if they approved the plans they were “further embedding” a legal contravention.
But Mr Broxton’s planning agent Gerallt Davies of Roger Parry and Partners said concerns over the loss of the facility had "already been judged", and the original application had been withdrawn because Montgomery Town Council had raised concerns regarding design and layout.
Mr Davies said: “We resubmitted the application with a change of design to be a bit more traditional and in keeping with the town. We are glad to say the town council had no objections when they saw the layout.”
Powys planning officer, Rhian Griffiths recommended councillors approve the plans.
Going to vote, the application was supported by all 13 councillors in the meeting, with the condition that the homes be used for residential purposes only, to prevent the buildings being used as holiday lets.
