A GEORGIAN terrace house that has been unoccupied for four years after a fire sparked by an explosion is to be restored as a home.
Plans to refurbish the listed terraced workers’ cottage in Chepstow’s Lower Church Street, and build a rear extension, have been approved by Monmouthshire County Council’s planning department.
The building was grade II listed in 1975 for its group value with other buildings and is the right-hand of a pair of late Georgian period cottages.
The street was rocked by an explosion, which saw one man taken to hospital, on September 21, 2020.
The explosion sparked a fire at number 38 Lower Church Street and the approved application covers number 37 and was submitted by Sarah Rogerson, supported by insurers Admiral.
Eyewitnesses at the time described a loud bang before finding a house on fire, and windows scattered across the street – and a man thrown from the house.
Local resident, Martin Hall, an architect, told the South Wales Argus at the time: “I was on a conference call and heard a massive bang.
“I looked out my window and saw all the windows had gone straight across the street.”
Another resident, who wasn’t named, said they’d seen a man thrown from the house, but he was later “sat up and talking”.
The explosion caused the partial collapse of an extension and the UPVC conservatory at number 37 which were then demolished as part of works to make the building safe.
That will now be replaced with a single storey extension, spanning the width of the house, and a suitable brick will have to be agreed as a condition of the permission. The roof of the house will also be replaced.
When the house was listed in 1975 it retained “much of its historic character”, according to planning officer Victoria Cornock’s report, including a bay window, door and architraves but photographs show by 1978 sash windows were in its place.
Ms Cornock said alterations had been made without listed building consent, and the council had an enforcement case open in 2013, but the unauthorised works was “inadvertently granted listed building consent” when a 2021 application was approved.
But Ms Cornock’s report stated: “Whilst the building has been subject to change in the last few decades, it still retains much of its Georgian character and significance as a terraced workers dwelling, particularly regarding its size, general design and fenestration.”
It was also noted the building has been in a “poor condition” since the fire and it will now be brought back into use.
