Hotel Conversion Objections

SOUTHEND Council planning officers have recommended the conversion of a former Westcliff hotel into a house of multiple occupation (HMO, despite objections from residents.

Planning officers have recommended that 13 Cobham Road, previously the Anchor Hotel, will become a 15-bedroom HMP.

Plans to turn the three-storey building into a children’s home in 2019 was refused on the grounds it would mean a loss of visitor accommodation.

In 2022, plans to turn the building, close to the Leas Conservation Area, into an HMO were also refused for the same reason and because of “poor living conditions” for prospective tenants.

Southend’s development control committee said none of the concerns received for this latest proposal were “justifiable reasons for refusing planning permission”.

The report added: “The proposal has not fully addressed elements of policy in relation to the loss of visitor accommodation for the city. Weighing in support of the public benefits of the proposal are the provision of housing and the re-use of a vacant building.”

Responding to the latest proposal, Suzi Caws from the South Westcliff Community Group, reportedly stated that Westcliff is becoming an “open house” for developers, adding: “We’ve got all sorts of developers coming in from London.

“They just want to make a buck. They’re not interested in the town because they don’t live here.

“This area should be a prime area for lovely housing and for people to come and enjoy the seafront. Instead of that it’s being turned into a rubbish dump.”

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