Storage Unit Plans on Small Commercial Site Approved by Planning Officers Despite Objections Being Raised....
- teessidetoday
- May 28
- 2 min read
The Owners of Stranton House in West View Road Hartlepool have had their application to build two storage units approved by Hartlepool Borough Council, but not without there being objections to the proposals by some local householders.
28th May 2025
Hartlepool Borough Council has this week approved plans for the siting of two (though potentially three) new storage units adjacent to Stranton House on West View Road, a site said to be formerly the headquarters of Gus Robinson Developments Ltd.
The application submitted by Mr. Adam Readhead through Elder Lester Architects, a Yarm-based architectural firm outlined proposals not only for the siting of two storage containers, as officially stated, but also reference the erection of three brickwork storage units, each featuring roller shutter doors, to match those already on-site.
Currently, the area is said to be used as a storage yard and accessed via nearby Heortnesse Road. Existing structures include several brickwork storage units which, according to the applicants, are already fully let—prompting what they claim is 'rising demand' for more secure storage options. The plans include creating a new vehicular access point off Heortnesse Road and additional metal rail fencing to match existing boundaries.
Developers have made the case that the reuse of the brownfield site aligns with national and local planning policy, particularly citing the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) and Hartlepool's own Local Plan Policy, arguing that the proposals are consistent in scale, layout, and materiality with the surrounding area and that their development would offer a more secure and visually appropriate alternative to previous shipping containers on the land.
However, not everyone was convinced.
Three local objections were reportedly lodged—one short of the threshold that would have pushed the matter before the council's Planning Committee. Objections varied but raised concerns over:
The height of the new structures.
The potential increase in traffic on Heortnesse Road.
The impact on neighbouring properties already contending with noise and congestion from the site.
Despite these concerns, its claimed Hartlepool Borough Councils planning department saw no significant issues in greenlighting the application, with the plans getting approval this week, albeit with conditions—though at the time of publication, Hartlepool Borough Council had yet to disclose the specifics.
This decision is likely to frustrate some in the West View area, particularly given the recent spate of developments being rubber-stamped with little public transparency or consideration of neighbourhood disruption, where its claimed some local residents Once again feel HBC is more concerned with ticking the "brownfield box", rather than genuinely weighing the local impact of yet more commercial expansion.
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