PLANS for extensions to a run-down Winchester suburban home have been thrown out by city councillors.

Members of Winchester City Council’s planning committee voted unanimously last week to reject the scheme for 46 Harrow Down, Badger Farm.

The scheme would have seen single-storey front and side extensions, as well as a two-storey rear extension, alterations to the driveway, and a conversion in the loft to create more living space.

The committee heard that the house had been poorly maintained, as well as fears over traffic and concerns that it would likely become a student house of multiple occupation (HMO).

City councillor Jan Warwick, who represents the Badger Farm and Oliver’s Battery ward and is also the area’s county councillor, was among those who objected.

She said that the plans were “more in keeping with a student HMO than a family residence.

“A five-bedroom extended property goes against the character of Badger Farm.”

Cllr Warwick also expressed concerns over parking situation at the property, saying that the garage was too small to use for parking a car, and therefore there would not be enough off-street spaces.

The scheme, which had been recommended for approval by planning officers, also saw objections from city councillors Brian Laming and Eleanor Bell, who also represent the Badger Farm and Oliver’s Battery ward, as well as more than a dozen residents.

Among the other criticisms levelled against the scheme were that it was an overdevelopment, overshadowed neighbouring properties, it would see a loss in hedge rows and trees, and would impact on highways safety.

Debating the plans, Cllr Jane Rutter said: “I’m afraid I can’t support the officer’s recommendation, I’m afraid it’s overdevelopment.

“The fact that it has been allowed to rot for ten years should not force the planning committee to permit anything.

“It’s just outrageous. Very few people, if any, use their garages [in Badger Farm] for parking their car.”

Councillors voted to refuse the application on the grounds that it “would have an adverse negative impact on the character and appearance of the area”, as well as an “adverse overbearing impact on the residential amenities of number 45 Harrow Down”.

The rundown state of the property is highly unusual as Badger Farm only dates at the earliest from the late 1970s and most of the streets, such as Harrow Down, near the Sainsbury’s superstore, were constructed as recently as the mid-1980s.