We have a curious fascination for tiny houses, fitted on to implausibly small scraps of spare land – and proposals crop up regularly in planning. We’ve previously covered tiny house plans on Sugden Road, and at what later became a hair salon on Latchmere Road. And here’s another – a three-storey-plus-roof-terrace project on what seems to have once been an off-street parking yard at the northern end of Marney Road, shown below – on a site currently known as “land to rear of 14 Stormont Road”.

The plans here essentially plan a kitchen / diner in the basement (with a lightwell at the front providing daylight), a living room on the ground floor, a bedroom and bathroom upstairs, and a small roof terrace (to meet the requirement that new developments have some private outdoor space) – all in a fairly modern style loosely reminiscent of the new-build house at 31 Stormont Road. The interesting thing about the plans here is that because they include a full basement, the overall indoor area would be about 670 square feet, which is quite a respectable space for a one-bed property, and maybe not really the ‘tiny house’ that might be expected on a site like this. The basement could be a bit of a headache to build given there’s a substation right next door, but it is key to making this site work as a comfortable property.

The neighbours at 12 Stormont Road may not appreciate having a two-storey building to the south of their back garden, but these plans are otherwise likely to be fairly uncontentious. There are a few precedents for this type of development, including the garage at the back of 33 Stormont Road which got permission to become a house. There aren’t any windows in the rear of the proposed building, and the roof terrace includes screening so it does not overlook the neighbouring gardens. There’s understandably some concern about parking with new developments, though this could be mitigated if (as is likely) approval of the development includes a requirement for the developer to fund the removal of the dropped kerb and reinstate a street parking space in front of the old off-street access gate.

To see full details (and, if you wish, make a comment to be considered by the planning department) visit the Wandsworth Planning website and search for application number 2021/5425.

Update: On the 25th January, this proposal was refused planning permission. The details haven’t yet been published but this maybe wasn’t surprising – the proposal saw many letters from neighbouring residents worried about overdevelopment with a building running right to the edge of the small site, overshadowing gardens, and the general effect on the street.