Bath Honda, Prior Park Road, Widcombe, Bath

Bath Honda occupies a Grade II mid-18th century former mill building or warehouse, situated within the Bath conservation area and World Heritage Site. It forms part of the quasi-rural setting of Bath, heading south along Prior Park Road out to the Grade I Prior Park. The original mill ponds are located to the immediate east of the site. The garage occupies an open, unobscured position in the bend of the road with a traditional boundary treatment of coursed rubble stone with cock ‘n’ hen capping. Works are concentrated to the car park and the single storey late 20th century workshop building attached to the Grade II three storey building, and therefore does not constitute an alteration to historic fabric, although part of the connecting wall may date earlier to the original mill complex.

BPT maintains concerns regarding the proposed signage. We acknowledge that the previous proposed use of illuminated signage (see 21/02371/AR) has now been omitted. The current signage on the site retains a recessive silver-grey colour palette which sits more comfortably against the natural colour of the Bath stone and within the semi-rural setting of Prior Park Road. We therefore emphasise that the proposed bright red colour palette of the new proposed signage would be visually intrusive and would neither preserve nor enhance the more muted, natural appearance and character of the conservation area, and would be of harm to the setting of a Grade II listed building.

Furthermore, the proposal now includes the replacement of three signs, but this still results in the retention of several of the silver-grey signs and resulting in a discordant variety of signage across the site. We strongly recommend that all on-site signage should be of a defined design and style to ensure visual congruity and appropriately mitigate harm.

This application is therefore contrary to the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990, section 16 of the NPPF, and Policies B1, B4, BD1, CP6, D1, D2, D8, D9, and HE1 of the Core Strategy and Placemaking Plan, and should be withdrawn or refused.