Scarborough councillors question resort's future as HMOs grow

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 23 Oct, 06:08 · Archive

Scarborough Town Council has objected to converting a guesthouse into supported housing, citing concerns about the cumulative loss of tourism accommodation to HMOs.

Scarborough Town Council has objected to plans to convert The Thoresby guesthouse on North Marine Road into a 10-bedroom HMO providing supported accommodation. At a planning and licensing committee meeting on Thursday, 22 October, town councillors unanimously opposed the application, arguing it would add to an existing concentration of HMOs in the area and result in the loss of another tourism business.

Councillor Sarah Mason said she was concerned about the cumulative impact of guesthouses being lost from the tourism sector. 'We are Scarborough, the first holiday resort, and that's our bread and butter,' she said. 'All these guest houses, we're just getting more and more HMOs here. Are we giving up being a holiday resort? Because that's what it appears to be to me.'

Councillor William Stuart noted that the protection of visitor accommodation was one of the reasons policies had been included in the local plan. He told the meeting that guesthouses were 'getting turned over for emergency accommodation use' and called for a 'more strategic, holistic approach' from North Yorkshire Council towards HMOs and supported accommodation. Committee chairman Councillor David Knowles also questioned the wider direction of travel.

How it is being reported

• Questions about resort’s future amid rise in HMOs and supported housingSCARBOROUGH’S future as a seaside resort has been questioned by councillors amid fresh concerns about the growth of HMOs and supported accommodation in parts of the town.Gazette & Herald (Malton) · 23 Oct, 05:00
• Questions about resort’s future amid rise in HMOs and supported housingSCARBOROUGH’S future as a seaside resort has been questioned by councillors amid fresh concerns about the growth of HMOs and supported accommodation in parts of the town.York Press · 23 Oct, 05:00

In this story: Scarborough · North Marine Road · Sarah Mason · William Stuart · David Knowles · North Yorkshire Council

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