Victorian school to be demolished

A Victorian school building in north Wales will be demolished to make room for affordable housing.

Medra, a subsidiary of housing association Adra, had applied to Denbighshire County Council’s planning department, seeking permission to demolish the former Rhos Street School on Rhos Street.

At a planning committee meeting today (Wednesday, 10 December), councillors unanimously approved the plans for 20 affordable homes, despite concerns from residents and the council’s own conservation officer.

Residents had cited a long list of reasons for objecting, including the school being an “important building”, overdevelopment, the road being unsafe, and noise.

Ruthin Town Council also objected to the new homes due to the building being an “important historical asset” and parking issues.

But planning officers had advised that the committee back the plans and said the application presented “a difficult decision” between “preserving a building” and “affordable houses.”

Speaking in favour of the application on behalf of Adra, Huw Evans said: “After three and a half years of proactive collaboration with council officers and consultee bodies, we now welcome the recommendation to approve this application.

“As council members, you will be well aware of the housing crisis in our communities, and Ruthin is unfortunately no different to other parts of the county. The officer report confirms there are currently 57 households with a connection to Ruthin in need of social housing and 67 households in need of intermediate rented properties.”

He added that the school building was not listed, that Adra was aware of the concerns, and that houses would always be affordable once built.

Cllr Bobby Feeley said the site had remained empty, derelict and “a bit of an eyesore”.

“I believe these carefully constructed plans from Adra will transform the site and give 20 much-needed affordable homes for local people. I appreciate there have been difficulties to overcome and a certain amount of opposition, but I believe the report has largely addressed all the issues and come up with a positive and correct recommendation to grant,” she said.

Cllr Emrys Wynne said there was a danger of rats on the site and that the building was bringing the area down, backing the development. But he added there should be a memorial plaque remembering the school if it was demolished.

Councillors heard how the council’s conservation officer said the existing building should be redeveloped, as it was an attractive building, despite not being listed by heritage guardians CADW.

But planning officers disagreed, arguing that CADW didn’t think the building should be listed and that it had been marketed unsuccessfully. Cllr Huw Hilditch-Roberts pointed out that other developers hadn’t been able to make the building viable.

He added he “didn’t want to see a nightclub” replace the school. The committee unanimously backed the plans.