A planning application has been submitted to replace four garages with townhouses in the centre of Ripon.

The garages, to the north of Court Terrace just off Kirkgate, would be demolished so the four two-bedroomed townhouses could be built.

Each of the four homes would have a small courtyard of around 9 square metres to the rear, along with a cobble-set frontage of 13.5 square metres. There would be space for four cars to be parked outside.

An application submitted last year was turned down by Harrogate Borough Council over fears that the area, known for gypsum deposits, was not proven to be stable for development. Although the applicant, Mike Kell, provided a report from an environmental consultancy, the council’s decision notice said:

“The submitted gypsum report and associated declaration form are not considered to comply with Policy NE9 of the emerging local plan by virtue that they do not sufficiently demonstrate that the site can be developed without creating issues of ground instability and the signatory does not meet the definitition of a ‘competent person’ within this policy.”

A new geotechnical report on the site has been submitted with the current application.

Read more:

• Search for ‘hero’ who rescued child from Ripon river
• Plan for a home at former Knaresborough high street bank

Objections to the original plans for three-storey homes were raised by Historic England, leading the applicant to submit new plans for two-storey homes instead. Planners acknowledged the run-down appearance of the site was out of keeping with the historic surroundings, less than 100m from Ripon Cathedral. Their 2019 report said:

“The design is similar to that of the cottages to the south of the site and is considered to be an improvement on the overall appearance of the local area and would have a positive impact on the character and appearance of the conservation area.”

The new application can be viewed in full on the planning pages of Harrogate Borough Council’s website using reference 20/02809/FUL.