AN application to build two blocks of flats in a village near Darlington has been rejected by councillors.
Clarion Homes' application for 18 flats in two three-storey buildings at the former Ernest Bennett factory, in Middleton St George, was refused at a Darlington Borough Council planning committee meeting.
An earlier proposal for seven houses and 24 flats was turned down in February last year.
A total of 18 letters of objection to the latest plans had been received by the council, plus a petition containing 37 signatures. Middleton St George Parish Council had also objected.
Councillor David Lyonette said he was shocked when he saw the scale of the proposed buildings.
"It is an over-intensification of the site and does not fit in at all," he said.
"The size of the blocks is out of character and I agree with the parish on this."
Planning officers had recommended approval of the scheme, but the committee voted unanimously against it.
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