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At a planning meeting on November 18, city councillors discussed the planning application for the Cathedral Hotel which would see its conversion into five star luxury suites and a rooftop bar. The 40ft rule restricts the height of developments in order to preserve the view of Salisbury Cathedral. Plans for the Cathedral Hotel do not abide by this policy.
Chairman councillor Tom Corbin said: "It's a very attractive proposal which looks wonderful to me - there's only one big issue, which is the rooftop bar and the 40ft rule." READ MORE: Planning application for the Cathedral Hotel submitted He said his "only issue" with the application is how it "down plays" the breach of this policy. He said: "It is in breach of our 40ft rule, if this goes through, are we putting ourselves in danger of similar situations? In agreement, councillor Ian Tomes said: "It's a lovely development, the Cathedral Hotel needs some serious money spent on it.
" He said that owner of the developer, Larasian, Brian Currie has "gone about it in all the right ways". "I do take my hat off and wish we had more individuals like him who are willing to do a proper job. "But that 40ft rule has made Salisbury what it is.
I think any breach of that is dangerous - you set a precedent. I can't support it for that one reason." The Cathedral Hotel is currently vacant (Image: Spencer Mulholland Photography) Cllr Sven Hocking said: "If you look from towards the Cathedral, there's another building that stands in the way - the old Laura Ashley building.
This is hardly going to obstruct the view of the Cathedral any more than the one between it and the Cathedral. "I would completely support this - the sooner its built, the better." Cllr Victoria Charleston agreed, saying it is a "really exciting development" that she "fully supports".
Vice chairman cllr Annie Riddle said that the fact the roof will be made of glass rather than brick means the most obstruction would be "a bit of reflection if you're going past on the ring road". She said: "I am very much in favour of the 40ft rule and I don't want to set a precedent that could be exploited, but I feel if you lose this developer for this important building, somebody who is prepared to put their money where their mouth is- who knows when somebody else will do something about it." Wiltshire Council has until January 1 to make a decision.
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