Scarborough's former Elsinor care home set to be converted into flats after months of planning delays

Approval of the property’s conversion has been deferred twice by members of Scarborough Council’s planning committee due to what councillors said was a lack of clarity from the applicant regarding rubbish collection and the number of rooms.

Formerly Elsinor Residential Care Home, the five-storey mid-terrace property at 5-6 Esplanade Gardens in Scarborough could be converted into 10 flats if approval is given at the meeting on September 8.

The applicant, Sure Start Property Solutions Ltd, plans to use two of the studios as holiday lets.

The application was initially deferred in July so that members of the committee could visit the site and establish the “suitability” of external rubbish disposal at the site.

It was then deferred for a second time in August to establish “whether the applicant would consider creating an internal access at ground-floor level” at the rear of the building where the rubbish disposal was proposed.

This was a major concern for councillors because without the rear access many residents would have had to walk around the block to dispose of rubbish.

However, according to an updated report, the applicant has updated plans to create new corridor providing access to outside bins from all flats at the rear of the building, removing the need for residents to talk around the block or for waste to be collected from inside by a contractor.

Councillors also deferred for a second time when they noticed at the committee meeting that the number of bedrooms in some of the proposed flats had been “misnumbered” on the application, with some one-bedroom properties labelled as having two bedrooms.

They also sought clarification on whether the proposed rooms complied with national minimum space standards.

According to the new report presented to members for the upcoming meeting, each of the units “exceeds the Government’s guideline” for minimum space standards nationally and “by a considerable margin” in most cases.

The amended plans now also label the flats correctly in terms of the number of bedrooms in each unit, according to the report.

The applicant is being advised to consult with North Yorkshire Police about “safety and security matters”.

The plans are recommended for approval.