A Twickenham man is £30,000 worse off after he admitted breaching listed building consent laws at Richmond Magistrates’ Court.
Alan Bernard, of Waldegrave Road, Twickenham, in south west London, had been given permission by Richmond Council in 2007 for a rear extension and minor alterations to a Grade ll listed Victorian villa.
Following a tip-off by a member of the public, Richmond Council found Bernard had made many more changes to the building, including ripping out cornices and removing fireplaces.
Magistrates fined Bernard, 66, a total of £22,500 for the damage he had caused. He has also been served with an enforcement notice from Richmond Council ordering him to return the property to its original condition at his own cost within six months.
Bernard, who owns a building company and who rents the property to tenants, admitted breaching planning rules. He was fined £10,000 for re-pointing the property in a style and colour inappropriate for the area and the building.
Further fines included £5,000 for removing two fireplaces, one of which was Victorian, and a total of £7,500 for other unauthorized changes made to the building. These included removing a simple Victorian cornice in the living room and replacing it with a modern ornate version.
As well as the fine, Bernard agreed costs of £6,000 and asked for five other changes he had made to be taken into consideration.
IHBC’s Local Government Officer Bob Kindred notes that the case is on the IHBC’s up-to-date Listed Buildings Prosecutions database, and that any new prosecutions should be noted to him at: government@ihbc.org.uk See: www.ihbc.org.uk/prosecutions.htm
