PLANS to convert the site of a country pub into seven homes have been refused by West Devon Borough Council.

Councillors at the planning committee meeting last week voted against the conversion of the Mucky Duck Inn, Lydford, into seven dwellings, saying it was an unsustainable form of development and an over-intensification of the site.

An original plan for the site had been to close the pub and create a single dwelling and this application was conditionally granted last August.

Now the applicants, Mr J Mathys and Ms Peacock, are planning to convert the three-storey inn, which currently contains several self-contained bed and breakfast units, and surrounding land into seven dwellings.

Following many letters of complaint, residents from the area voiced their concerns about the development at the planning meeting, regarding unanswered questions on foul water drainage and alleged inaccuracies in the drawings relating to the application.

Council planning officer Edward Persse confirmed inaccuracies had been found but the drawings had since been corrected.

The provision of a suitable, and accepted, sewerage system had been included in conditions for the granting of planning permission, but this remained a contentious issue with no details decided to date.

Mrs Sue Boxall, who represented the residents, said: ?If the owner had sought last year to close the public house and convert it to seven houses one wonders if that would have been approved. Yet this is clearly what was intended all along.?

Mrs Boxall said the council should resist the change of plan as there would be no local benefit and the properties were aimed at the ?second home? market.

Cllr Dilwyn Hughes suggested a provision to prevent second homes so the dwellings would have to be permanent residences, but this was rejected on the grounds that it would be an unreasonable restriction and impossible to enforce.

Residents? concerns were echoed by ward member Cllr Pam Scannell, who said: ?I am asking the committee to throw out the plan, for something more suitable. There is not, as yet, enough information for the committee to make a sensible and reasonable judgement.?

Plans will now have to be altered by the applicant and resubmitted to the council officers and committee for further consideration.