Former hotel set to become residential flats under new proposals

Anthony Lewis, Local Democracy Reporter 

A former hotel could be turned into flats after new planning applications submitted.

There is an application to turn the former Rhondda Cynon Taff Diamond Jubilee Hotel in East Road, Tylorstown into 12 flats.

The plan is to turn the building into a residential apartment block and a design and access statement for the project says it will provide additional residential accommodation in the area and help to revive a landmark building which is currently empty and has been for a number of years.

The Victorian hotel is located on the main roundabout at the southern end of Tylorstown.

The statement says that although the building is not formally recognised through either statutory or local listing, it possesses distinctive local character and is a familiar landmark to residents.

It says this local significance is strongly supported by Rhondda Cynon Taf (RCT) which expressed a clear preference for the building’s repair, restoration, and retention wherever possible.

The statement says its current continued vacancy and lack of maintenance threaten its integrity, making the prominent site a priority for a suitable and active new use.

The structure is understood to be in sound structural condition, following a structural engineers survey and the design and access statement says that the evidence of the building’s robust condition “strongly supports the consensus among the various parties that its demolition would represent a lost opportunity” for Tylorstown.

A previous application for a care home on the site was refused because: “The proposed development is unable to demonstrate provision of adequate off-street parking facilities for residents, staff and visitors commensurate with the scale and intensity of its use.

“Consequently, the creation of demand for on-street parking in the vicinity of the site would be harmful to highway safety, the free flow of traffic and the amenity of neighbouring occupiers.”

Another reason for refusal of that application was that the proposed accommodation “would either be in close proximity to a busy highway or suffer from poor outlook, which together with limited facilities and external space, would create a poor quality living environment to the detriment of future residents of the proposed care home.”

The design and access statement for the current application says that whilst their proposal is not for a residential care home, they have addressed these issues as they believe they are also integral to a residential apartment scheme.

The statement says this scheme is now providing 100% parking for the development by using the ground floor and lower external spaces to provide car parking, cycle storage and associated bin storage area.

It adds that it is not envisaged that the development will put any pressure on street parking in the local area and all vehicles can enter and leave the development in a forward facing gear.

The statement also says that all accommodation has been moved from the ground floor to the upper levels of the building to provide the necessary parking for the development.

It also states that all apartments will be moved away from the road to address noise concerns and to provide good views out of habitable rooms.