During the recent planning debate on the 131 Promenade applications, Cheltenham Civic Society warned that an unintended precedent could be set if either of the applications were consented. The Society’s fear was that such a precedent could be used in future by anyone to justify all sorts of structures alongside existing buildings. Despite the warning, the councillors went against their officers’ recommendations and the precedent was set.
We thought it was only a matter of time before someone used the 131 decision to justify their own scheme. But little did we expect that it would be Cheltenham Borough Council (CBC) itself to be the first to do it, and only a matter of weeks after its own approval of the 131 structure!
“The poor quality of debate and lack of rigorous challenge by the Planning Committee on the 131 schemes has, ironically, allowed this unwelcome precedent to be set”, said Civic Society Chair Andrew Booton. “But now we see it being used to threaten the setting of our town’s finest Grade-I building, Pittville Pump Room.
“We acknowledge that Cheltenham Trust (CT) is tasked to raise funds, but that must be balanced with its duty to safeguard the town’s significant heritage buildings it is entrusted with.
“There is not a clear enough distinction between CBC and CT and there’s too much emphasis on income generation rather than longer-term heritage management.
“The proposed temporary café is also not really temporary at all. It follows on from the previous café, which was in place for some four years. Now CT is seeking consent for the new café until 2029, when coincidentally, its own lease will end.
“Meanwhile, CT has been doing almost nothing to address the permanent improvement of the Pump Room’s setting and facilities – despite offers from CCS and others to help them find solutions.
“CT’s new American ‘Rockabilly’ approach featuring a converted Airstream trailer for the café’s servery demonstrates their lack of understanding of the site’s heritage and especially its quintessential English Regency period importance.
“This lack of understanding of heritage management is also exemplified by their disappointing proposal to disguise both the toilet and storage containers with cheap timber ‘hit-and-miss’ cladding.
“This is yet another missed opportunity to look at the Pump Room’s whole setting and fulfill their responsibility to preserve and enhance it instead of make do and mend.”