Plans for two homes granted in Clydebank but road issue raised

The site on Roman Hill Road, Clydebank, has been given the go-ahead but with conditions that may only see one house built due to issues with a privately owned road.

At the West Dunbartonshire Council planning committee meeting today, councillors asked the applicant how they would address the issue surrounding the 11 neighbourhood objections which could decide the fate of the second proposed house.

To build the second home, the applicant, Mr Mulhearn, would need to adopt a section of the road currently owned by six residents who recently paid for its upgrade in 2019.

READ MORE: Application for two new homes in Clydebank gets 11 objections

The current home which has been empty for 'some time' will be demolished. 

Plans include two properties one and a half stories high that will be mirrored versions of each other, with four bedrooms, a kitchen, a dining room, a lounge, an en-suite and a bathroom in each home.

Drawing of proposed dwellings on Roman Hill Road (Image: West Dunbartonshire Council) At the meeting, Provost Karen Murray Conaghan asked Mr Mulhearn: “Is it your intention to go ahead and build one home and thereafter seek permission to build the second if road owners have granted consent?"

Mr Mulhearn replied: “I can’t really comment on that.”

Following this Councillor Gurpreet Singh Johal sought clarification. He asked: “Is it your intention to build one dwelling and then resolve the road matter civilly?”

Mr Mulhearn replied: “I don’t know.”

Johal then responded: “Objectors would appreciate a more clear response on this.”

Of the 11 objections, concerns about traffic, the aesthetic of the local area and the ‘overdevelopment’ of the plans were considered.

One neighbour who addressed the committee had concerns about the impact on surrounding houses.

She said: “I’ve been here 55 years and it’s a quiet bit of road. Over the years plots have been sold off but every plot is consistent in size.

“Two homes is going to change the character of the road.”

Provost Conaghan commented on this concern saying the estate on Roman Hill Road was not like one where the homes ‘all look the same.’

The meeting took place at Clydebank Town Hall today (Image: Newsquest) Before the final decision was made, conclusions were drawn by the chair of the committee Lawerence O’Neill who said that two homes could sit ‘comfortably’ on the site but his concerns were on the road adoption.

He said: “If I am correct this was a family home of the late mother and father of Mr Mulhearn. If this is one house I have no issue.

“I’m moving that we do grant [permission] but if conditions are not met then only one dwelling can be built.”

The decision on whether the second home will be built is now down to a discussion between the applicant and the residents who own the road.