RESIDENTS of Dyar Terrace in Winnington have voiced their anger at plans to build 16 new apartments on the site of a former church.

St Luke’s Church was demolished in 2015, and the land opposite Dyar Terrace has been vacant ever since.

Proposals for the 0.3-hectare site would see the construction of 16 one and two bedroom apartments, each being between two and three storeys in height.

But residents have come together to show they dismay at the proposed development and calling for it to be rejected by Cheshire West and Chester Council.

One resident, Paul Rosa, said: “Northwich planning policy says that design should reflect the architectural landscape and materials of the area while making a positive contribution.

“The proposed development would construct a modern, large and rectangular apartment block which would clearly not be in keeping with the Victorian properties on Dyar Terrace and Solvay Road, which date back to 1878.

“It is also excessive, inconsistent with family houses and gardens in the area and the open space provisions are almost non- existent, which cannot be good in this present climate emergency crisis.”

Northwich Guardian:

The former St Luke's Church building

These views are also shared by Martin Armitt, who said: “While Fischer Germain did hold consultations with local residents, they fail to mention the issues raised or the lack of any willingness to scrap or significantly modify plans.

“The demolition of the church was unnecessary, and while congregations had dwindled, the building could have been preserved and converted to apartments which would likely have received support from local residents.

“The apartment proposal has been designed to extract maximum commercial gain and goes against the views of local residents, the needs of the community, the environment and CWAC’s planning guidelines.”

READ>Plans submitted to build 16 apartments on former Church site

Long term resident Susan Brown added: “As a resident of Dyar Terrace for over 30 years, I was saddened when the church was demolished as it could have converted into apartments which would have been more acceptable than the new, out of character flats proposed.

“We were told by Fischer German that their brief was to get maximum commercial gain for the Church of England, and obviously the views of residents were of no importance.

“The Church was given the land for the benefit of the community, and this is how it should remain.

“Also, the plan to use Winnington Lane as an entrance is madness given the traffic chaos caused by 1,200 more houses in Winnington and its proximity to the Burnside Way entrance and traffic lights.”

To give your views on the proposed development, please email yourviews@guardiangrp.co.uk.