A landlord has been told that he must demolish an extension he built without getting permission, after he lost a planning appeal.
A planning inspector has ruled that the first floor extension which Kaushik Trivedi built above a garage at the home in Ruskin Road is 'dominant and incongruous' - and must be taken down.
The six-bedroom property, in West Earlham, is let to university students and Mr Trivedi had said he intended to add an extra room, while the extension would be a separate, two-bedroom unit.
Norwich City Council had granted permission for a two-storey extension and the single-storey garage in April 2001, before Mr Trivedi owned the property,
But, after the extension above the garage was built without permission, the council issued an enforcement notice in February this year, saying that 'the extension that has been built is not sympathetic to the character of the original property due to its scale, form and prominent position on the principal elevation.'
They added: 'It is also considered harmful to the character of the street scene'.
But Mr Trivedi appealed against the enforcement notice - with the matter going to the planning inspector.
Mr Trivedi's agents had argued that the materials 'blend in with the surrounding environment' and ensured they were 'not visually obtrusive to the character and appearance of the area'.
They said the council had been 'inconsistent' in allowing a two-storey extension in nearby Lovelace Road, which they said was 'very similar' to what Mr Trivedi had built.
But planning inspector Andrew Dale dismissed the appeal. He said: 'There has been a failure to achieve high quality design, a lack of respect for local distinctiveness and character and the erection of a dominant and incongruous extension.'
The council had suggested the garage and the first-floor extension should be removed.
Mr Dale said that would be 'excessive and unnecessary'. However, he ruled that the property put back to how it looked before the extension was built above the garage.
He has ordered that the first floor extension be demolished and the single storey pitched roof which used to be there reinstated.
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