Plans to rejuvenate a run down row of shops and replace it with a “bulky” block of flats have been refused.

A proposal to redevelop the site next to the former Hen and Chicks pub in Luton High Street was turned down during a Medway Council planning meeting yesterday (December 18).

An application was submitted by Directive Planning in February for the site currently housing store Medway Food Centre, My Sandwich Obsession café and the Golden Dishes restaurant.

The agents called the premises “in a state of disrepair, exhibiting broken parts and general deterioration”.

Under the proposal, the run-down buildings would have been demolished to pave the way for a four-storey block of flats consisting of 13 one-bedroom and 11 two-bedroom apartments.

It would have also featured three commercial units, three offices and cycle storage.

The man behind the scheme to revitalise the area is businessman Ali Akpinar who runs Medway Food Centre.

The application received a total of 128 comments from residents, with 82 in support and 46 objecting.

But planning officers recommended the development for refusal, saying the building would be an overdevelopment of the site which would dominate other buildings and be out of keeping with neighbouring properties.

The report said some of the flats inside the block would not receive sufficient sunlight, while others would overlook neighbouring houses

During a Medway Council planning meeting last night, 14 councillors voted in favour of refusing the plans.

Cllr Gary Etheridge (Con), who represents Strood Rural ward, said: “We all know Luton Road very well.

“We know it is full of houses that have multiple occupations. We know fully well the amount of rubbish that is strewn out in the streets simply because the existing residents don’t have anywhere to put it or store it.

“This will just make the existing situation worse because it will just aggravate the existing system.”

Cllr Douglas Hamandishe (Lab and Co-op) added: “When I looked at the plans, I just felt this was a slumification – if that is even a word – of the area and we don’t need to be doing that.

“This is a cash grab to maximise building for profits over people’s welfare.”

While other councillors were in agreement – they suggested there is still potential for rejuvenation of the site.

Councillor Adrian Gulvin (Con), representing Lordswood and Walderslade, said: “This is an overdevelopment of the site, it is too bulky and too domineering.

“Having said that, I think this site is still suitable for development because it is a site I know very well.

“Particularly the two single-storey premises on the right-hand side of the site are very unattractive and yes, there is space there to build up.”

In May, plans were put forward to convert the building belonging to the empty Hen and Chicks pub next door into 10 one-bed apartments - but it was later withdrawn.

Then just five months later, firefighters were called to the site after a blaze tore through the building in the early hours.

The pub was a centre for Luton’s community activities and was popular among locals but last orders were called in 2019, and the brewery tried unsuccessfully to find a new manager.