Council refuses permission for Orton garden shed to become pet grooming salon
A planning application which aimed to turn a shed at an Orton flat into a professional pet grooming business has been denied.
Silvia Mourao submitted the application on May 14, outlining her plans to repurpose an unused wooden outbuilding within the garden area of her ground-floor flat in Hanbury.
Ms Maurao, who holds City & Guilds certificates from the College of Animal Welfare in Huntingdon, has previous experience of pet grooming from when she lived in her home country of Portugal.
While Accent Housing (the land owner) gave its conditional permission for the business to go ahead, Peterborough City Council (PCC) ultimately shot the plans down following objections from neighbours and concerns raised by several council departments.
Documents show that representations were made by three neighbours, who shared concerns the new business would “introduce regular noise from dogs, grooming equipment and customer comings‑and‑goings directly beside residential flats, in an area currently characterised by strictly domestic use.”
The council’s Highways department voiced objections based on the fact “the proposal fails to demonstrate any safe means of access, parking, turning or servicing within the site.”
While PCC’s Drainage Team raised no objection in principle, it noted that the south‑western part of the plot, including the existing car park, is identified as being at risk of surface‑water flooding, therefore “Any change of use must…demonstrate that it would not increase flood risk on the site or to neighbouring land.”
The decision to refuse the application was made on June 30.