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A MEMBER of the demolition team knocks mortar off bricks, outside the wrongly sited house.
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House demolition begins with tears
9/ 7/2008
A BUILDER has been forced to demolish his dream home after council planning chiefs ruled it was 2ft too tall.
Steve Woodfinden-Lewis, 49, said he was left in tears watching the house on Chester Road, Woodford, being knocked down.
Stockport planning chiefs ordered the £600,000 detached property to be flattened because it was bigger than agreed plans. Once it has been reduced to rubble, he is vowing to rebuild it in accordance with the plans, and put a date stone on it which will mean ‘more than anything’.
Mr Woodfinden-Lewis, who has had to pay for a demolition team to knock the building down, said the stress caused by the two-year legal wrangle led to breakdown of his 26-year marriage and caused him to suffer a heart attack.
Planning permission was originally granted for a two-storey L-shaped three-bedroom style-cottage overlooking 40 acres of greenbelt land. An application to change the house type to include a two-storey rear extension, a higher roof and different porch was refused in April 2006.
The council served an enforcement order in September 2006 saying the house was bigger than approved, was in the wrong location, had a different appearance from the approved plans and was out of keeping with the surrounding area.
Mr Woodfinden-Lewis lost an appeal against the enforcement notice in July last year and was given 12 months to comply.
Councillor Chris Baker, chair of the Planning and Highways Regulation Committee, said: "The council carefully considered this application before granting planning permission.
"Mr and Mrs Woodfinden-Lewis chose to ignore the approved plans and built a house which was completely inappropriate in this location They then ignored council advice which resulted in formal action being taken. "
Mr Woodfinden-Lewis said there are discrepancies in the plans and his attempt to comply with the enforcement order was hindered by council officials.
He said: "What I’ve been through is disgusting and morally wrong. It’s caused me to have a heart attack and led to the breakup of my marriage. It was built too big because the plans were passed and approved for the wrong size house on the plot. I’ve spent £30,000 trying to prove my case. This is not the end of it because I fully intend to reconstruct the property as per the planning permission. I’m determined to build the property that should be there. It is heartbreaking for me to watch it being demolished. I was in tears when I passed it."
Mr Woodfinden-Lewis said he is now staying with kind-hearted well wishers.
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15/07/2008 at 12:13
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Maybe we all know the reason really.
15/07/2008 at 23:42