Aberdeen couple win battle to replace asbestos-clad garage after council refusal

An Aberdeen couple have won a battle with council planners to replace their asbestos-clad garage with a new modern carport.

Mr and Mrs Diplock moved into their house on Carden Place, which had recently been converted from offices back into a family home.

They later discovered the garage already in place at the back of their west end property had asbestos in its roof, so decided to remove it.

The couple went on to lodge plans to replace the structure with a double garage and carport last summer, which they would access from Albert Lane.

But council planners believed the garage was too wide and would be out of character for the neighbourhood and refused permission.

Planning chiefs argued the new garage and carport would “adversely affect the character and appearance” of the city district.

As the structure would extend across the width of the garden, they claimed it was of an “unsympathetic scale, massing and design”.

And bosses thought that giving it the go-ahead could set an “unwelcome” precedent for similar garages within the Albyn Place and Rubislaw conservation area.

But while the garage would have solar panels on the roof, that wasn’t enough to sway planners, and they ultimately threw the proposal out.

However, the determined couple recently took their application to the council’s local review body in a bid to overturn the decision and get their new garage built.

Councillor Ryan Houghton suggested members visit the site to get a better idea of the area and the garages already surrounding the Diplocks’ home.

However, his colleagues were all content that they had enough information and could make a decision without a trip.

Councillor Ciarán McRae said: “Knowing Albert Lane and the varied uses and types of garages down there, I’m not too concerned that this is going to be majorly out of place.

“I would be differently minded if this were to the front of the property. I’m very keen to keep the frontages of this area clear because it has a unique character.”

Councillor Marie Boulton believed the new garage would be a “big improvement” on what’s currently there.

She explained: “There’s been a significant change to the rear of these lanes with extensions of monstrous sizes and a lot of paving over.

“In this particular one, I think there is a big gain in terms of biodiversity because what is at the moment a car park is going to be turned back into a garden.

“It’s really encouraging to see some of these empty properties being repurposed into family homes again, and the fact of life is people do have cars, and we have to move with the times.”

Local review body members went on to unanimously overturn the refusal and granted full planning permission.