PLANS to demolish a neglected historic building in Looe are unlikely to be approved, a developer has been told.

Advice was sought earlier this year for the demolition of Polvellan Manor and the construction of five houses on the site.

Cornwall’s planning department has now responded. While they recognise the poor state of the building and the high cost of its refurbishment, they say the harm to Looe’s heritage and the conservation setting would likely be considered too great to allow the scheme to go through.

Polvellan is located prominently above the Millpool, but semi-hidden from view by woodland. The property has fallen into a very sore state of neglect and disrepair.

Built in the Gothic style in the 1780s, it has been a private house, a maternity hospital, a hotel and a school. Most recently a nursing home, it has stood empty since 1995.

Applications by former owners to bring the manor back to its former glory have not progressed to fruition.

Polvellan is currently owned by the company Polvellan Looe Ltd, whose directors are Robert Shimwell, Jordan Shimwell and Jason Tucker.

There now looks set to be a stalemate between the applicant and the council. The applicant argues that the building is simply too expensive to retain, whereas the council says that the building is too valuable in heritage terms to lose.

The applicant says: “Renovation and improvement of Polvellan Manor would be possible, but this would be at a cost that will not be viable commercially.

“Demolition and sensitive redevelopment of the site to serve local needs…..is a more rational and pragmatic approach, with due regard to the setting in a Conservation Area and woodland.”

The applicant warns that “it is entirely foreseeable that the property will remain in its current derelict condition” if it’s not knocked down.

But Looe’s Neighborhood Plan says that Polvellan is important to the town’s history. It sets out that any plans for the property “should retain the 18th/19th century appearance of Polvellan House, and enhance its heritage value”.

Cornwall’s Historic Environment Planning (HEP) officer also strongly recommends that the property is retained within any new development.

While the building is not listed, it is classed as a “heritage asset” and therefore has a certain amount of protection around it, under both national and Cornwall planning policy. National policy states that “heritage assets are an irreplaceable resource and should be conserved in a manner appropriate to their significance, so that they can be enjoyed by future generations”.

Meanwhile Cornwall Council's Climate Emergency plan places an emphasis on the re-use of existing buildings before constructing new ones, says the HEP officer.

The Cornish Buildings Group acts to raise awareness of the county’s historic buildings and campaigns for their protection. Polvellan Manor has been part of its ‘Buildings at Risk’ project for some years, and the group has tried – and failed – to have the building listed. The panel behind this decision said that the building had lost almost all of its original architectural merit due to alterations made in the 20th century.