PLANS for four holiday-let cabins near Nymet Rowland have been dismissed at appeal.

The lodges, which would have been made from timber and glass and had two bedrooms and two bathrooms each, would have been built on land just north of the village bordering the River Taw.

Mid Devon District Council refused Mr P Carter planning permission for the project in November last year.

The local authority said the development would have had “a significant adverse and harmful impact on the character and appearance of the rural area”. It also had concerns about increased traffic, drainage, and was not convinced there was a market for tourist accommodation.

Nymet Rowland Parish Council also objected to the plans, along with 21 members of the public who wrote to the council.

Mr Carter took the refused plans to the Planning Inspectorate in a bid to have the district council’s decision overturned.

Appeal documents said the cabins would only take up “a fraction of the area in question”, would be made of “natural sustainable material” and would be more affordable than other local holiday options.

They also argued that “only four vehicles a week” would access the site, the “big natural gradient leading to the river” meant there had been no major flooding, and each cabin would have “a grated soak away to channel any rain fall from roof area to a controlled disperable [sic] point”.

But the Planning Inspectorate said that, although the cabins would cover “a fraction of the overall appeal site area”, they would “nevertheless be sizeable” and surrounded by terraces, decking and hot tubs, and overall the plans “would fundamentally alter the character and appearance of a large part of the appeal site’s rather tranquil setting”.

With regard to traffic concerns, it said there are “long stretches of unlit lane where reversing would be awkward and necessary if vehicles were to meet”, and more cars on the road could “lead to further driver frustration, thus exacerbating the risk of incident”.

The Planning Inspectorate added that the project “would conflict with the development plan” and therefore not be in a suitable location. It did, however, find the plans had adequate proposed drainage.

On balance, it decided that the “benefits would not outweigh the identified harm”, and dismissed Mr Carter’s appeal.

You can see the application on the Mid Devon District Council website under reference 24/01107/MFUL.

To see more public notices and planning applications, visit: publicnoticeportal.uk.