Objection Letter J.D.R. Kewley

The Secretary of the Planning Committee Department of Local Government and the Environment Murray House Mount Havelock Douglas Isle of Man

Dear Sir,

Re: Planning Application 06/00523/B Removal of Redundant Chimney Stack and Re-roofing of Welsh Slate Methodist Church Hall, Arbory Street, Castletown.

I am the owner and occupier of 30 Arbory Street, Castletown, which is directly opposite the premises which are the subject of this application.

The Methodist Church Hall, otherwise known as the Methodist Sunday School, was originally the Wesleyan Methodist Chapel, until the building of the present Chapel in 1833. According to the account given by Dr. Frances Coakley, the leading authority on Manx Methodism, the church hall was built in about 1801, originally on a back site, with access down an alleyway from Arbory Street. It appears that it was only later that it was re-fronted, and Dr. Coakley very perceptively points out that the window on the main north (Arbory Street) front has similarities to the window above the main door of St. Mary's Church in the Parade, which was designed by Thomas Brine, the principal architect working in Castletown during the 2nd and 3rd decades of the 19th Century.

The building is not at present a registered building and I am not aware that any detailed internal investigation has been carried out. It is a building which is well worthy of registration, both because of its age, because of its position in the history of Methodism in the Island and because of a possible connection with Thomas Brine. From my own research on Brine, I believe that Dr. Coakley's attribution may well be correct, as his wife's family owned adjacent land and he would have been the obvious choice to do any work. He also of

course designed two other churches in Castletown, St. Mary's on the Parade and the Roman Catholic Church in Bowling Green Road.

Any proposals, therefore, in relation to this building need to be considered very carefully, preferably after the building has received the protection of registration.

There are no drawings included with the application when viewed in Castletown Town Hall, only a location plan and front and back photographs. It is therefore difficult to tell exactly what is proposed.

The works appear, however, to consist of two aspects, first the removal of the rear chimney stack and second re-roofing with Welsh slate.

When the whole complex of buildings, the old chapel, the new chapel and all the ancillary buildings are seen from Farrant's Way, they present a pleasingly picturesque aspect. The chimney contributes to this. It is also part of the history of the building. I am not sure at what stage it was added, whether there was some sort of fireplace or stove originally or whether it was added during the commercial use of the building from the 1830's to the 1860's, or whether it was added as part of the Sunday School. I believe it should be retained and therefore oppose this aspect of the application.

No reason is given for the re-roofing of the church. If there is nothing wrong with the existing roof, it should be preserved. If there are problems, these need to be properly reported on and an acceptable solution found which should involve the reuse of as much as possible of the existing roof. The application does not seem to propose any work to the roof timbers but it should clearly state that if there is any suggestion that roof timbers which may well date back over 200 years are to be touched, this should be the subject of a separate application.

I do have sympathy with the Chapel in trying to maintain the building, but I do feel that a fuller application would have enabled a better assessment to be made.

Yours faithfully,

J.D.R. Kewley