Newport council rejects Castleton Baptist Church café plans

The council granted permission to turn the disused Castleton Baptist Church into a suite of offices in 2002.

Last October, Richard Cox from Bridgend sought permission to build a one-bedroom apartment at the listed building - and café which would be open between 11am and 9pm six days a week.

Existing offices and a cloakroom would be removed and replaced with three toilets.

Of the 38 neighbours who were consulted, nine objected to the plans.

One resident said it would have a detrimental effect on the “general character” of the surrounding area.

Another said: “From my bedroom windows I can see into their ground floor windows, which I would say is the same from their windows into mine.

“The floor level to the annex of the property that overlooks my drive is of a higher level than my ground level, allowing loss of privacy to me and my property.”

Another Castleton resident said “parking has long been a major problem” where Marshfield Road joins the A48 as a stop between Cardiff and Newport.

Residents say the church's position, just off the A48, already makes it difficult to park (Image: Google)

Since the church has been used for business purposes, they said staff and visitors had often made it difficult for neighbours to exit their driveways and Mr Cox’s plan did not “make any reference to deal with the parking problem that would be created”.

Another took fault with the number of proposed employees - four full-time and two part-time - which seemed “excessive” for a rural area.

'Value'

Historic buildings conservation officer Laura Smith said the proposals would “bring about the appropriate repairs that are required to prevent the building from further decay”.

“I visited the site and do believe the space lends itself to the proposed use,” she added.

“No major alterations are being proposed, and the bulk of opening up is removing modern partitions and plasterwork.

“The internal character would be more visible following these opening up works, thus restoring the building’s visible heritage value.”

The council rejected the proposals yesterday, March 14, citing a lack of information on waste management and fume extraction among a slew of resident concerns around parking and privacy.