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06
Oct
Owner of Ripon retail premises may face enforcement action
The owner of a listed building in Ripon faces potential enforcement action after a window at the retail premises in North Street was altered without planning consent.
The multi-pane Georgian-style wooden window at the Vape Lounge shop, has been replaced with a single pane of glass, contrary to strict planning laws.
Failure to comply with listed building planning can result in penalties, including an unlimited fine and up to two years in prison, or both.
Planning authorities are empowered to issue listed building enforcement notices requiring the building’s owner to reverse the alterations.
The window pictured prior to its replacement
Within days of the unauthorised installation of the new window at 21 North Street, North Yorkshire Council planners were contacted by both Councillor Andrew Williams and heritage watchdog Ripon Civic Society.
Cllr Wiliiams, who is a member of the unitary authority's area planning committee which covers Ripon, told the Stray Ferret:
I live close to the shop premises where the window has been switched without permission and, after being contacted by a number of concerned members of the public, I reported the infringement to planning officers.
The offending replacement window at 21 North Street.
North Yorkshire Council’s head of development management, Martin Grainger, said:
We take planning breaches very seriously and fully investigate any reports we receive.
We are aware that the window has been changed at this address without listed building consent. We are actively seeking a swift resolution to this matter – and will not hesitate to take enforcement action
As a consultee to the planning authority, Ripon Civic Society's input focuses on preserving the city's historic environment and listed buildings.
The society pointed out:
Property owners wishing to make alterations to a listed building are required, by law, to seek approval from the planning authority.
Failure to do so, could prove very costly.
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