A GIANT illuminated advertising screen next to a junction and car wash has been refused as an âunacceptable feature in the street sceneâ.
National firm Wildstone Estates Limited asked for advertising consent for the six metres wide and three metres tall screen that would have been perched on a two metre high stand as part of its drive to digitise advertising posters.
The firm, described as the âlargest owner of advertising assets in the countryâ, is replacing paper and paste posters with digital screens, though the proposed site on a patch of grass, between the IMO car wash and a line of trees along Avondale Road, in Cwmbran, would have been a new location.
The firm has said moving from paper and paste is allowing it to reduce the overall number of advertising hoardings, as digital screens can rotate the number of adverts they display, and along with reducing âclutterâ means vehicle trips to replace posters are eliminated as displays are controlled remotely.
It described the location north of Avondale House as a âmix of commercial and residentialâ including the car wash, garages and warehouses and as an area where advertising should be positioned. It said the nearest residential properties, at Blaen Bran Close, are about 40 metres northwest of the site.
Two objections from residents
Torfaen Borough Councilâs planning department received two objections from neighbouring residents regarding the scale of the display, level of illumination and impact on their living conditions, but said residents of Blaen Bran Close wouldnât be subject to any views of the illuminated screen or any light pollution as it had been confirmed the display would only be south facing.
Planning officer Tom Braithwaite also said homes, to the south, on Station Road wouldnât suffer an adverse impact as they would be some 270m away while the councilâs highways department said as long as a condition was in place to ensure the screen didnât display any moving images, it is rotation of up to six adverts a minute, it had no objection.
However, Mr Braithwaite refused to grant consent and stated in his report the âoverly tall and wideâ display would harm the character of the area as it would be a âvisually prominent and incongruous form of developmentâ.
He said while Avondale Road is in part a commercial area, it also has some residential homes it also lined by âattractiveâ large mature trees.
Mr Braithwaite said the digital illumination would âexacerbateâ the âjarring and detrimental impactâ which would be at odds with the âsoft, green landscaped area of this part of the streetâ and the screen would âsignificantly harm the character and appearance of this part of the street sceneâ.