Controversial hotel plan ‘would not improve social fabric of town’

A planning saga has come to an end as plans for a hotel have been turned down by Kirklees Council.

Under the proposals, a three-storey hotel with 33 rooms would have been built on a car park behind Yorkshire House at South Street in Dewsbury. Other features included a reception, dining area and four parking spaces.

This latest application was already a toned-down version of plans for a 75-room, six-storey hotel that came before and were also rejected. But despite the development being stripped back, the application was still unable to secure planning permission.

In the decision notice, Kirklees planners cite the loss of car parking space, design quality and height, among the reasons for refusal. In addition, the public benefits of the…