HOMEOWNERS are hitting back at three £2million Airbnb-style holiday huts on back gardens they say will ruin their posh area.
Furious residents are protesting after plans for new “shepherd’s hut” homes were given the green light in Brockley, south-east London.
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The three holiday let huts would be available for rent to tourists between Thursday and Sunday throughout the year, and for the entire week during the summer holidays.
The plans also mention “comprehensive landscape works” and a “community accessible forest garden” which would be accessible to schools and community groups when not being rented out.
Temporary planning permission for the huts to be built in the garden land were given the go-ahead by Labour-run Lewisham Council.
Each holiday hut would include a kitchenette, double bedroom and shower as well as outdoor seating, and be accessible via a quaint country lane known as Wickham Mews.
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The site is flanked on either side by large houses and their sprawling back gardens.
Permission was only granted for one year, meaning developers Parkhill Group would have to reapply for a permanent licence.
Approval was also given conditional on promises to residents about the huts being available to the local community.
Opponents of the plans include neighbours Juliet and Chris Johnson, both retired architects who say the huts would back on to their garden.
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Grandmother-of-four Mrs Johnson, 77, said: “I didn’t want to be ‘Nimby’ – but it’s always the unknown.
“It could be a great idea for people to stay, but I think it’s very silly to get rid of the sycamore trees.”
She also warned: “Sometimes you get some parties in back gardens and they go on until about 4am – the Airbnb people might be similar.”
She added: “It’s a bit of a rare lane which really adds to urban life – the Airbnb would disrupt it.”
Her husband Chris, 78, said: “We did write in to say that we have no objections in principle, providing Parkhill came forward with decent planning proposals.
“Historically there were at least two other applications proposing garages and office units.
“We have a policy for the Mews of no residential development and a policy for keeping the back gardens as back gardens.
“The proof in the pudding is, how does it survive a year on from temporary approval?”
Another neighbour, who wished to remain anonymous, said: “I’m a bit sceptical.
“They have one year to use the site – it raises all kinds of questions about how it will be managed, particularly as far as Airbnb goes.”
She also fretted whether community groups and schools would be able to use the space during school holidays.
‘NOISE AND DISTURBANCE’ FEARS
She added: “The community groups won’t have access at the times that are maybe the most useful to them.
“I have questions about the viability of the plans – I just question whether they are even going to make the money back as a result of this kind of thing.”
She described her “biggest fear” as “losing the country lane nature of the area”.
She added: “I don’t want to come across as a Nimby, but there’s the potential for anti-social behaviour.”
Hannah, another resident living nearby, said: “You can see it’s a quiet area.
“It’s a residential area and these are people who will not feel like they are part of the community and that they have a responsibility to the community – that’s my worry.”
Dad-of-one Joe Bennett, 42, was also among the objectors.
He said: “There is a consensus between local residents that introducing this style of holiday accommodation is completely inappropriate for the setting as it is happening in a back garden next to our homes.
“The area is quiet and entirely residential, which is why we choose to live here.
“The scheme is from a developer who does not live in the area and is seeking to make revenue from their land with a proposal that is inappropriate for the setting.
“My family’s main concern is noise and disturbance from overnight visitors who are staying in accommodation that encourages being outdoors.”
The Sun Online has approached the Parkhill Group for comment.
A spokesman for the firm has been quoted as insisting the garden would be used for activities including forest school classes and therapeutic horticulture when no one was renting the huts.
He also insisted potential guests would be screened in advance and holiday-makers would be barred from inviting others along.
He told the News Shopper: “This is an innovative response to a clear accommodation need that might otherwise result in a loss of housing stock through change of use.
“The majority of the site is dedicated to green open space.”
The concerns come as another developer was ordered to take down a cabin they put up at a Kent beauty spot after locals’ protests.
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Meanwhile, Norfolk residents accused a neighbour of building an illegal holiday home.
But another south London district just a mile from Brockley has been hailed as a “delight”.
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