Studland hotel holiday resort plans refused again

Knoll House has been a hotel since 1931

Revised plans to redevelop a Dorset seaside hotel have been turned down after a two-hour debate.

Kingfisher Resorts wants to turn Knoll House Hotel in Studland into a holiday resort and had scaled-down its plans after its last application was refused.

But Dorset Council's planning committee said the proposals needed more work.

Committee chairman Toni Coombs said the redevelopment of the hotel was something "we all want to see, but its got to be the right application".

The plans were refused on the grounds of the effect on important heathland sites, the Heritage Coast and the wider landscape, together with the scale and form of the new buildings, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Concerns were also raised about the effect on the area's dark skies zone, the need for a thorough biodiversity plan and more information about surface water drainage.

Kingfisher previously said it had made every effort to address concerns raised by the previous application, reducing the height of the main 30-bed hotel building and reducing the number of apartments from 22 to 18.

The firm said it aimed to create a high-end luxury resort, employing about 200 staff and accommodating about 280 guests.

According to Kingfisher's website, Knoll House was built at the turn of the 20th Century as a summer retreat for a member of the Bankes family of Kingston Lacy.

It was later used as a summer let before being turned into a hotel in 1931.

The Eastern Area Planning Committee is due to meet on Wednesday at 10:00 GMT.

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