Exmouth: Planning application to demolish hotel and build 81 new apartments, new hotel submitted

A planning application to demolish the existing Devoncourt Resort & Apartments building and construct new flats and a new hotel has been submitted to East Devon District Council.

If the plans are approved, as many as 81 residential apartments and a 62-bed hotel could be built in its place.

The hotel would be able to be accessed from the Maer Road car park, and 25% of the new apartments have been marked as 'affordable'.

The planning application is currently awaiting a decision by the council.

What people are saying about it

Several people have objected to the application in the public comments.

Mrs Sandra Morton said that the scale of the development was too large for the location, the number of the proposed apartments would be too many, the hotel should have onsite parking rather than use the Maer car park, the roof line would be too high, and it was unclear whom the affordable apartments would be for.

Mr Arthur Anderson also objected, saying that for the new hotel to use the Maer car park would be 'not acceptable', as it is used by the Exmouth Land Train which needs a large turning circle, has already been promised to a football club, and is often full at peak times.

Mr Nicholas Sage said that the application 'will have a significant impact on neighbouring accommodation in Douglas Avenue and Maer Road', and that too many additional buildings are proposed where there were none before. He also said that the removal of trees should not be undertaken due to its impact on the privacy of neighbouring properties.

One commenter, Mr David Calder, remained neutral.

He said: "The existing hotel is in a pretty dilapidated state and can only get worse without serious development.

"The artist's impressions of the new buildings on Douglas Avenue appear to be a significant improvement on the existing and the increased set-back and larger front green space is welcome. The overall height appears to respect the existing street scene."

However, he also raised similar concerns about parking, and suggested that more space for parking should be allocated within the development 'to protect the already heavily used Maer car park'.

Click here to read the public comments in full.

The Devoncourt Resort & Apartments building can be found on Douglas Avenue or here on Google Maps.

You can find out more about the planning application here.

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