A beach club has been told to dismantle its new outdoor seating area, which was built without planning permission and has been labelled a “metal monstrosity” by locals.
Silver Sands Beach Club erected the controversial structure at North Beach, Heacham, West Norfolk, but faced a backlash from residents when it sought retrospective planning permission from West Norfolk Council.
Jan Whitehead commented on the council’s planning portal, describing the “towering, ugly” structure as “completely out of character” with the area.
She said: “This metal monstrosity detracts from the natural beauty of the beach and protected marshland nearby.”
While Ian Evans compared the raised platform to an industrial site, such as an oil refinery or a chemical works. He said: “It has a dominating and overbearing appearance and will be detrimental to the area.”
William Freeman also criticised the construction, calling it an eyesore and not in keeping with the local landscape. The council has now rejected the planning application and is discussing the removal of the structure with the club.
The decision notice stated: “The structure is considered to be visually incongruous and out of keeping with the rural, coastal locality which is characterised with generally low-rise structures.”
“The development appears very industrial in design and materials are poor with no particular relation to the surrounding area.”
“The structure is out of scale with the locality it finds itself in and the lack of handrail to the stairs and poor safety as well as the overall relationship with the site further compounds this unacceptable impact.”
