A BUNGALOW with a “dangerous” drive between the front doors of neighbouring homes is set for approval after it was to be formally rejected.

Councillors agreed in January to refuse planning permission for the bungalow as highways officials warned the shared drive would lead to “undesirable and dangerous vehicle manoeuvres” despite planning officers recommending it be approved.

In line with Monmouthshire County Council’s policy the application then it had to come back to February’s planning committee with a formal reason for refusal, which was the proposed drive would be only three metres wide, which is 1.5m short of the Welsh Common Standards.

But when the planning committee voted the decision was reversed and instead of being formally rejected the proposed bungalow in the back garden of Number 11 Park Close, Abergavenny was approved by seven votes to six. At January’s meeting the committee rejected the recommendation for approval, and instead said it should be rejected, by the same margin.

The application will now come back before the planning committee for a third time, in March, with a recommendation it be approved.

When the result was announced in the council chamber, in Usk, an unidentified member of the planning committee could be heard to say “Ooh God, somebody’s changed their mind.”

In January the chairman of the planning committee Conservative Phil Murphy and his vice chair, Labour’s Dale Rook took the unusual step of going against the officer’s recommendation and voting to refuse the application.

The experienced pair both stuck with their vote for a refusal of the application at the February meeting as did four other councillors.

However Conservative Fay Bromfield, who voted against approving the application in January, declared an interest and didn’t vote at February’s meeting. The Llangybi Fawr councillor said she hadn’t realised applicant Steven Parry, who spoke at this week’s meeting but hadn’t attended in January, was a customer at her shop.

Mitchell Troy and Trellech Conservative Jayne McKenna, who abstained in January, voted against the new recommendation the application be refused.

Before the vote there was confusion among councillors on whether they should vote “for” the new recommendation the application is refused or “against” it, which would mean they support approving the application.

Planning officer Andrew Jones said since the January rejection a revised layout had been submitted, which showed vehicles could enter and exit the drive in a forward gear.

Applicant Mr Parry said another bungalow in the area had a three metre wide drive which he said vehicles have to drive across a short stretch of a public footpath to enter “before they hit the road”.

He said he had amended his application and allowing the bungalow would address the shortage of affordable housing in Monmouthshire and noted he would also pay a contribution towards affordable housing elsewhere in Monmouthshire in line with the council’s policy.

But objector Anthony Davies said the January committee had been right to recognise the “dangers identified by the highways department”.

He also said the new layout reduced the number of parking spaces from five, to four, which is below the council’s parking standards.

Mr Davies said: “This drive would be shared by three properties and may be used by up to five vehicles at a time approaching from three different directions and meeting at a pinch point between two homes.”

He also said some drivers would have to “dog leg” around a blind corner and wouldn’t be able to see young children leaving the front doors which are only a metre from the driveway, which Mr Davies said wasn’t the case with the property cited by Mr Parry.

After voting for a second time the application be approved Labour member for Croesonen, Su McConnell asked for confirmation the vote had been on the revised plan.

Wyesham independent Emma Bryn, who twice voted to refuse permission, said the public hadn’t been given the opportunity to consider the revised plan.

Abergavenny Grofield councillor Laura Wright declared an interest and didn’t vote, and left the room during the discussion, while Labour colleague, Caldicot West End member Jill Bond also abstained. She hadn’t been present at the January meeting.