Council rejects plan for a fish and chip shop on Berkeley Avenue, Reading, citing noise and parking issues after appeal dismissed.
The building has an apartment above it. A Costcutter store is in the same row of buildings. Across the street, you can find an Asda Express Esso station. The location is in Coley, near houses.
The man hoped to keep the takeaway open until 10 PM. The unit has been empty for a while.
The council denied the plan. They worried about more late-night noise and also cited a lack of parking spaces. They thought it would disturb neighbors, because the station and store already cause activity.
The council worried it would add to existing problems. The fuel station operates for 24 hours, and Costcutter closes later on weekends too. An officer thought parking would suffer for the flat. The council rejected the plan last March.
The businessman appealed to the government. He disagreed with the council’s decision. His agent said the unit looked bad and argued a chippy would improve it. They said the area needed a takeaway restaurant.
The government inspector dismissed the appeal because he agreed parking was insufficient. It was not enough for the shop and flat.
However, the inspector, Cahalane, didn’t agree with every reason. He thought flat residents wouldn’t mind normal activity, given that Costcutter and the station already cause that.
Cahalane said local rules don’t restrict some shops like this. The rules allow small commercial spots like this. The appeal was dismissed in January. The council reviewed this result in early February, and you can find the council record with reference number PL/22/1769.