Appeal allowed and costs awarded for signage on commercial building

Appeal allowed and costs awarded for signage on commercial building

CSJ Planning has been successful with an appeal for replacement signage on a commercial listed building within Bristol City Centre. The signage, which had received listed building consent months earlier, was refused by Bristol City Council on the basis that it caused harm to the host listed building, the setting of a nearby listed church, and the visual amenity of the surrounding area. Our appeal statement demonstrated that size, siting and overall appearance of the signs were entirely acceptable on this heritage building given its size and location within a mixed commercial area of the city. Considering that listed building consent had previously been granted for the signage, a costs application was also lodged as it was felt that the Council had been unreasonable in refusing the application and caused an unnecessary and wasted expense to the applicant. In allowing the appeal, the Planning Inspector agreed that the signage would have no adverse impact on the amenity of the area. She also concluded that, in finding unacceptable impacts that it had previously concluded would be acceptable, without adequate justification, the Council had behaved unreasonably and involved the applicant in the unnecessary expense of an appeal. Consequently, Bristol City Council was ordered to pay to the applicant the full costs of the appeal proceedings. Whilst the favourable decision on the costs application is welcomed, it remains very disappointing that a clearly straightforward matter had to be resolved via the appeal process, resulting in considerable cost and delay to the applicant. Case details APP/Z0116/Z/15/3031288

Categories      Commercial