A new proposal to renovate and alter one of Maldon's oldest homes will be debated by town councillors tonight (Monday 18 October), following the refusal of a similar application in August.

Maldon District Council's central area planning committee refused the application to carry out interior and exterior works on the house at 4 Silver Street, which is a Grade II* listed building, over concerns about proposed works to the cellar.

The town council also recommended refusal of the application.

The developer, Eleven Cromwell Ltd, has now resubmitted a revised planning application which removes the major alterations to the cellar and retains the building's car port.

Neil Bresler, director of Eleven Cromwell Ltd, said he has made the changes to "try to progress works and protect the structure from further weather damage".

He added: "The building has been empty for a few years - the longer a building is empty, the more it deteriorates.

"We're trying to get the application approved so that we can get on and protect the building."

Although the original application was recommended for approval by district council planning officers, the Maldon Society and Historic England, the council refused to grant it planning permission.

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Speaking at the time, Councillor Jeanette Stilts said: "The harm being done to the building by going through the cellar I think outweighs the good of the work that will be done to the rest of the building."

The works proposed in the revised application include removing the building's rear conservatory to replace it with a glass and aluminium canopy and installing replacement windows and new limecrete flooring.

The alterations also involve reorganising rooms on the second floor to add an ensuite to each bedroom, rearranging rooms next to the kitchen to allow for an additional staircase and constructing a second staircase leading to a protected corridor.

The existing cellar complex would be retained, and the only alterations to it would be adding two new metal doors at the bottom of the existing staircase which would seal off the cellars.

Historical research this year discovered the first owner of the house, at 4 Silver Street, to be a man named Josua - it is thought that he lived in the house in the fifteenth century.

The street is one of the most historic and best-preserved parts of the Maldon Conservation Area.

The town council's planning committee will debate the plans tonight and either recommend approval or refusal of them.

The district council will then make the final decision.

You can view the application documents for the revised proposal using the link here.