A Wandsworth newsagent has failed in a bid to stop his landlord turning his shop into flats.
Landlord Billy Johal was initially refused consent to change the use of 161 Wimbledon Park Road, SW18, from retail accommodation to residential use after the council decided that the loss of the shop would lead to an inadequate provision of the services it provided.
But the landlord appealed and a planning inspector reversed the decision.
However newsagent Sunny Patel decided to challenge the decision and, in a hearing earlier this month, his lawyers claimed that, among other things, the rules of natural justice had been breached and the sweet shop was a community asset.
In a ruling today Ouseley disagreed and rejected the claim.
With regards to natural justice, he ruled that the planning inspector appreciated the points that Mr Patel had raised, and so there was no unfairness.
He also found that the inspector didn’t make any errors in law when recommending the reversal of the decision. The inspector had considered whether the newsagent was a community asset, and had decided it wasn’t
Sunilkumar Bansilal Patel v Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government
Administrative Court (Ouseley J) 21 December 2016
