After a Planning Inspector determined that a temporary sculpture on the plinth of the former slave trader Edward Colston in Bristol would fail to preserve the special architectural and historic interest of the Grade II listed monument, the proposal has been rejected and appeals dismissed.
J P Sargent writes:
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Main Issues
- I consider the main issues in this case to be:
a) what is the significance of the various designated heritage assets that could be affected by the works;
b: whether the works would fail to protect the special architectural and historic interest of the Grade II listed Statue of Edward Colston1, whether they would fail to protect the special architectural and historic interest of any other listed buildings nearby by reason of the effect on their settings, whether they would fail to preserve the character or appearance of the College Green Conservation Area, and whether they would harm the significance of any of these designated heritage assets, and
c) if harm would be caused to the significance of any designated heritage asset(s), whether this would be outweighed by public benefits.
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Conclusion
- Accordingly, I conclude that the proposal would fail to preserve the special architectural and historic interest of the Grade II listed Monument, would not preserve the character or appearance of the Conservation Area, and would cause less than substantial harm to the significance of each of those designated heritage assets. In the absence of any clear and convincing justification for this harm, or any public benefits that are sufficient, on the evidence before me, to outweigh this harm, I conclude the proposal would be contrary to Section 16 of the Framework, and, insofar as they are consistent with the Framework, Policy BCS22 in the Bristol Development Framework Core Strategy (2011) and Policy DM31 in the Site Allocations and Development Management Policies Local Plan (2014), both of which seek to safeguard the significance of designated heritage assets. The appeals are therefore dismissed.
