Swansea Chalets planning application rejected

A SWANSEA Valley family who wanted to build holiday chalets are considering an appeal after council planning officers rejected their scheme.

A tourism needs assessment submitted on behalf of Andrew Davies and Rhodri Davies said there was a demand for chalet accommodation, but planning officers said not enough evidence of this had been provided.

The applicants, of Gellionen Ganol Farm, which is between Clydach and Trebanos, initially wanted to build six chalets but scaled it back to five.

Their planning agent, Robert Bowen, said: “Obviously they are very disappointed. They feel that tourism accommodation is very much needed in the northern part of the county.”

Documents supplied on behalf of the Davies’s said the farm had become uneconomical to run, prompting the setting up of a small Tarmac business.

The tourism needs assessment said the nearest self-catering accommodation was more than three miles away.

The proposed timber-clad chalets, it said, would create three part-time jobs and generate £154,000 per year for the local economy.

Planning officers said no evidence had been given about vacancy rates at holiday rental sites in the area and whether the proposed chalets would be viable in the long term.

They also cited planning policy, which said existing buildings should be used where possible for development in the countryside.

And they added that the single-track access to the chalet site was not acceptable.

But officers also said the principle of tourism accommodation in the north of Swansea was supported by planning policy.

The application had been backed by Cllr Brigitte Rowlands, from the neighbouring Mawr ward, who said in an email to the council: “Tourism in the north of the Swansea area needs to be catered for more.”