Upminster residents 'appalled' at Station Road hotel plan

Plans to build a hotel at 11 Station Road in Upminster were granted on appeal by planning inspector Darren McCreery last month.

Despite Havering Council initially refusing the plans, Mr McCreery overruled the local authority's decision.

This has prompted condemnation from residents, including Michael Dugdale, 73, who has lived in Upminster for 13 years.

"I think it's disgraceful," Michael said. "Nobody has been notified at all. That part of Upminster is bustling anyway, I don't think the town has ever had a hotel and I don't see why we need one now."

Michael said a hotel would not suit an already busy Upminster area (Image: Michael Dugdale)

Michael said he had also written to Julia Lopez, Conservative MP for Hornchurch and Upminster, to state that most of his friends and others he had spoken to in Upminster were "appalled" about the plans.

Ms Lopez acknowledged the residents' concerns and said there was a lot of scepticism about whether the hotel was right for the area.

Julia Lopez had responded to residents' concerns over the hotel development (Image: Parliament)

“I appreciate residents’ frustration that the independent planning inspectorate has found in favour of the hotel’s developer," she said. 

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In an email to Michael, Ms Lopez stated she was "disappointed" in the inspectorate's decision, but said there was no step she could take to challenge it.

Agent MRPP, on behalf of developer Eastern Ironworks, previously had its proposal for an 82-room hotel blocked after it was ruled "out of character", "over-domineering" and environmentally unsustainable by Havering Council.

It received the application in September 2022, refused it on January 16, 2023, but the inspectorate has since granted it on appeal.

Ms Lopez said earlier this week that she is trying to see if there is a way to mitigate some concerns about the hotel's appearance and management.

Mark Troster, another resident, questioned the need for a hotel in the area.

“[I] wonder where the demand for a hotel on Upminster high street is,” Mark said on Facebook after the council refused the application as "dominant" and "excessive."

Michael, in his email to Ms Lopez, identified car parking as another possible problem.

"Questions arise as to where hotel guests will park vehicles in an area which is difficult to park in for locals," he wrote.

Agent MRPP did not respond to a request for comment.

The Planning Inspectorate said it would be "inappropriate" to comment while the ruling can still be challenged at the High Court.