Stable conversion

[Jilly]

Hi we are making a tiny bit of progress and I would appreciate your advice (again!), please.

The conclusion of another meeting with a structural engineer means that we have decided to go with micro piling the whole structure rather than just the walls which are moving and the the part which has no foundations. 

 

Has anyone known of this being done without demolition? The building is not listed nor of value, but we haven't\can't get demolition permission, so have to convert. I believe this has to be done by supporting and then removing each part in order to comply. Should I speak to Building control and discuss how to do it, or am I going to put my foot in it?! 

 

Would it be mad to try to get a timber frame kit house under these conditions? 

 

I just love the idea of everything being so (relatively) simple...

Edited August 12, 2019 by Jilly

[Russell griffiths]

Have you watched the grand design programme when they where trying to restore an old castle, when OH DEAR IT JUST FELL DOWN. 

 

 

[ToughButterCup]

Morning! 

• Ask the SE for a fee proposal  to design a way of solving your problem using micro piles.
• Ask her to recommend three micro-piling companies who in her view are well qualified and competent
• Make contact and ask for a site meeting with all of those companies and listen hard.
• Agree / negotiate the fee with the SE. Ask three other SEs for their price to do the same work perhaps?
• Get a Cost Consultant (Quantity Surveyor) to price the job. Ask three other QSs for their price to do the same work perhaps?
• Wait for the QS estimate
• Decide.

11 hours ago, Jilly said:

[...]

The building is not listed nor of value, but we haven't\can't get demolition permission, so have to convert.

[...]

 

Which? Haven't or can't?  Insert that super-useful word yet  and you get out of jail free. Why haven't you explored demolition and the associated permission yet? 

Dont tell me, you don't want the bad news of how much that will cost. Join the club. 

 

It may or may not be mad to get a timber frame house: but don't do so before you know why you haven't chosen other options.

 

Simply put, you need to pay for well qualified professional advice before proceeding . 'That process felt really uncomfortable for us - at the same stage as you are, what did we have to show for all the money we spent - nothing: except clarity.

 

We're four years in to our project: I've lost count of the times I've been very grateful for the advice we solicited.

 

Knowing why you are not doing what you might reasonably be expected to do is worth many worry-free nights sleep.

 

[Jilly]

The SE is doing as you suggested and is being very helpful and is going to submit to 3 micro pile companies.

 

I went to the planners and asked about demolition, and they said no because it's against their local policy of reuse and tough, I should have done my homework on the building. I'm not resilient enough to fight for it.  Once we are living there and I can recover financially, I can see the value of  trying to get pp for an extension and being prepared to go to appeal etc

[Ferdinand]

11 minutes ago, Jilly said:

The SE is doing as you suggested and is being very helpful and is going to submit to 3 micro pile companies.

 

I went to the planners and asked about demolition, and they said no because it's against their local policy of reuse and tough, I should have done my homework on the building. I'm not resilient enough to fight for it.  Once we are living there and I can recover financially, I can see the value of  trying to get pp for an extension and being prepared to go to appeal etc

 

I wonder if the local policy of reuse says anthing about reuse when it does more damage to the planet?

 

Best of luck.

[the_r_sole]

.

Edited September 26, 2019 by the_r_sole

[Mr Punter]

As above, get a professional to look at this. You may need to apply for consent to have a condition removed or varied and you can use the professional's advice to establish that the proposal will lessen the impact and is in line with policy /  local plan. Do it now as it will probably take 3 months to get a decision.

[ToughButterCup]

3 hours ago, Jilly said:

[...]

I went to the planners and asked about demolition, and they said no because [...]. I'm not resilient enough to fight for it. 

[...]

 

That's the key issue: how you feel about it. Which  leads me to the next question - where will you get your resilience from? Financial security? A short holiday? Improved blood sugar levels? All three?

 

Even with a healthy bank balance you are going to need resilience. This building lark gets to every man-jack-one of us. It reaches down your throat, grabs your stomach and twists and turns - most often at 3:00a.m.  All of us on BH have it, have had and are going to have more of it before the end of each damn month. It's a bastard. 

 

Stuff what the planner says. She couldn't give a damn about you, your plan or anything to do with the Local Plan. She just wants your problem off her desk. If she detects a  hesitant, thoughtful vibe from you and she'll recognise the signs - easier to say no.

Know what you want, why you want it, how you're going to get it and have an evidence base to support your opinion - you'll always get a more considered response. Maybe her answer would still have been no - but she'd have had to work at telling you.

 

Ask a professional Planning Consultant to give you an initial  - paid for - consultation. Choose the planner carefully. And when you have that first opinion, ask a different  planning consultant - the one you really want working for you  (NOT the first planner) for an opinion. That way, there's no conflict of interest.

 

You may still decide not to proceed. This way, you will have evidenced why. And that's important because otherwise there'll always be a bit of you which niggles - well maybeeeeee we might have ............