Part-conversion of Mansfield hotel into HMO approved

The part-conversion of a Mansfield hotel into a house with multiple tenants has been approved after police found no ongoing crime issues from similar properties nearby.
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The owners of Mansfield Lodge Hotel, on Woodhouse Road, lodged plans to convert part of the site into a house in multiple occupation, known as an HMO, earlier this year and had hoped for a decision in August.

However, Mansfield Council’s planning committee deferred the application after several residents raised concerns over crime and anti-social behaviour from existing HMOs in their area.

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The August committee was told the area is ‘already imbalanced’ by HMOs on both Woodhouse Road and Park Avenue, with the properties creating a ‘transient community’ and leading to regular calls to Nottinghamshire Police.

Mansfield Lodge Hotel, Woodhouse Road, Mansfield.Mansfield Lodge Hotel, Woodhouse Road, Mansfield.
Mansfield Lodge Hotel, Woodhouse Road, Mansfield.

The concerns led to calls from councillors for more information.

Now the application has gone before the committee again, after the force said it had no concerns, with research undertaken on police systems and conversations with the local beat team finding no particular issues with crime.

The committee have now passed the plans, by six votes to three.

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It means part of the property, at 27 Woodhouse Road, will be changed into a 20-bed HMO across three floors, featuring four communal kitchens, with most bedrooms en-suite.

The remainder of the building, at 28 Woodhouse Road, will be retained for use at a hotel.

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Competition

At the August meeting, councillors heard the long-term owner planned the conversion after increased competition from new hotels in Mansfield town centre.

A new Travelodge has already been built, and plans have also been approved for a 100-bed hotel on the new Stockwell Gateway development.

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Darren Fletcher, Mansfield Lodge Hotel partner and manager, told councillors he plans to work with police to install CCTV now the application has been approved.

He said: “The police report highlighted there is only a small proportion of crime directly involved with HMOs.

“HMOs aren’t a big crime like everybody proposes them to be. This application could be a great pilot or indicator for other developments, a hybrid situation of half-hotel, half-HMO.”

He said the company has a ‘prospective buyer’ for the site, but if any sale falls through, he will oversee and manage both the HMO and hotel.

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