For those who want a bigger shop building than the neighbors will
allow....

TMT


Farmer hides castle from building inspectors By Peter Apps Fri Jan 25


A farmer built an entire mock castle behind a screen of hay bales and
lived there concealed for four years to evade planning regulations,
officials said on Friday -- but it may be torn down anyway.

Robert Fidler hopes to take advantage of a provision of planning law
that allows buildings without planning permission to be declared legal
if no objections have been made after four years

But Reigate and Banstead Borough Council in Surrey is not impressed.

"It does not count because the property was hidden behind hay bales,"
said a spokeswoman. "No one knew it was there."

The council wants the building near Redhill some 30 km south of London
to be demolished, along with an associated conservatory, marquee
structure, wooden bridge, patio, decking and tarmac racecourse.

"It looks like a mock-Tudor house from the front and it's got two
turrets at the back," the spokeswoman said. "I understand there is
also a cannon."

The couple would have been unlikely to get planning permission as the
farm was in "green belt" land where building was restricted, she said.
A hearing takes place in February.

Fidler's wife Linda told the Daily Mail newspaper the children grew up
looking at straw out of the windows of the house and that they kept
their son away from playschool on the day his class were due to do
paintings of their houses.

"We couldn't have him drawing a big blue haystack," she said. "People
might ask questions."

Planning inspectors had been called to the site by concerned
neighbours shortly before Fidler took the hay bales down in summer
2006 but had not seen the house.

"When the inspectors went there, all they saw was hay bales and hay
bales on agricultural land are not that unusual," the spokeswoman
said.

"I think the neighbours thought there might be something going on but
it is difficult to tell, isn't it?"

(Editing by Steve Addison)

"Too_Many_Tools" wrote in message
...
For those who want a bigger shop building than the neighbors will
allow....

I think the man was brilliant. I hope his legal battle is successful. I
think I would argue that he was entitled to the protection of the law that
permits structures built without permission to stand.

His biggest error was not to plant a tall hedge in front of the hay bales
while he was waiting for the statute of limitations to expire.

--
Roger Shoaf
If you are not part of the solution, you are not dissolved in the solvent.