Demise of Prospect House

A speculative developer has applied to the Council for planning permission for the demolition of Prospect House to make way for a part3/part4 storey block of 19 apartments.

Prospect House lies at the far end of Green Lane across from the Water tower. It is now boarded-up, but until shortly before Christmas it served as a residential home known as Standish Grange(why?).

It is part of the heritage of Standish as it was built in 1793(rebuilt 1910) and for many
years it was the home for successive stewards of the Standish family estate. The building still displays the owl and rat crest of the Standish family.

The tenant in 1893 was James Martland Ainscough MP, former Mayor for Wigan(1923) and the philanthropist responsible for refurbishing the Market Place in 1929, a development which included the demolition of 'Spite Row'.

Now I have no doubt that the proposed development passes all the pragmatic tests which arerequired for a successful application, including building regulations, sight-lines for traffic, privacy issues, brown-field site and properties suitable for first time buyers or single occupancy.  However, a caring council would also consider environmental, cultural, historic and other subjective issues.  Moreover, a council without double standards would also adhere to their own rules as set out in the UDP, which clearly states under the heading of CONSERVATION: "The Council will conserve what is best in the built environment by exercising its normal development control powers to encourage the protection and enhancement of buildings of historic interest".

At the risk of my views 'falling on stony ground', I firmly believe that planners must learn to show a greater strength of purpose when faced with opportunist developers.  I have suggested to the Council that they should
make an attempt to have the house declared a Listed Building, but given the choice between preserving a slice of the Borough's heritage or banking 18 additional community charge payments, which route do readers think they will take?

Keith Douglas