Plan to replace car repair garages near town centre with six houses

The garages at 40-48 Mount Pleasant would become six terraced houses, with five two-bed properties and one three-bed house, all 2.5 storeys high.

But the plans have been slammed by a neighbour, who raised concerns about the disruption from the development to neighbours.

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Raymond Li said: “Having heard drilling, heavy machinery on a daily basis for the last few years, and having had issues accessing my property due to road blockages, I do not support this planning application.

The garages birds eye view

“Mount Pleasant is a one-way road and therefore there is no other route option to access my property.

“I can only imagine other residents on Mount Pleasant also encountering the same disruption over the years and would also feel the same way I do.”

He also raised concerns about the impact on traffic, privacy and loss of light.

The site is surrounded by several listed buildings, including three on Mount Pleasant (numbers 50, 52 and 54) and one on Southampton Street.

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According to developer Flawn, the current use of the site as a car repair workshop “does not contribute positively to the street scene nor enhance the settings of the listed building”.

Hives Architects, writing on behalf of the developer, added: “There is a clear opportunity to improve the urban setting of the listed building.”

They said there is a great demand in Reading for family housing of  two to three beds and the site “offers a great opportunity to provide such homes”.