Sir Alex Ferguson

The former Manchester United manager objected “in the strongest terms” to plans for the new property in Wilmslow, Cheshire.

Neighbours Peter and Josephine Wilson submitted plans to demolish their two-storey home and replace it with a larger property. The couple is selling their house and interested parties want permission for the plans before buying.

The application has now been refused by Cheshire East Council.

A statement submitted by Sir Alex’s solicitors said: “The proposed development would entail a significant reduction in the established separation distance between the dwelling house on the site and the side boundaries of the plot, to as little as one metre. This is out of keeping with the prevailing layout of plots in the area which feature more generous separation distances of four to 30 metres.”

Sir Alex’s representation also said that the street was prone to surface water flooding during construction projects.

Planning officials refused the application because the house would be “excessively prominent”. Their report said that the proposed development “would not be in keeping with the scale of other buildings in the locality by reason of its combined height, width and resultant mass”.

The plans “would result in a dwelling house with the appearance of providing three habitable storeys in an area with an established character of two-storey properties. Accordingly, the scale of development is inappropriate.”

Image courtesy of Austin Osuide [CC BY 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons