Granting exclusive access to garden for ground floor flat

theartfullodger

itayshap wrote: »

Thank you for your prompt reply,
Our architect advised us that it is illegal to associate the garden solely to the ground floor, according to planning regulations. is that make any sense?

Offer your architect £25 to name the Act & clause that makes it illegal.

itayshap

Tom99 wrote: »

Do you have planning permission for the conversion yet? That will probably dictate whether you are free to divide up the garden how you like.
Also consider selling all three flats leasehold then sell the freehold separately maybe to the three leaseholders as joint owners or set up a company to own the freehold and give each leaseholder a 1/3rd share in the company.
If you go with your original idea of the freehold going with the one ground floor flat you may find that purchasers are put off by the responsibility of managing/repairing the whole building even if they can reclaim 2/3rds of the cost from the other leaseholders. I also understand that some mortgage co's are not keen on that arrangement.

Thank you for your advice about the freehold issue.
Regarding the planning permission, we originally wanted the garden to be solely associated with the ground floor but our architect insist that it is not possible and that we have to create a shared garden or to divide the garden. so we ended up applying for planning application in which we divided the garden for each flat. i relied on my architect but now i not sure this was the only option. how can i be sure?
the house is located in Liverpool.
here is a link to the ground floor plan: https://ibb.co/ctP3hyq

davidmcn

itayshap wrote: »

how can i be sure?

Employ yet another professional to give you a second opinion? Why do you not want to go along with the architect's advice? Especially if you've already submitted the planning application.

Wanderingpomm

I’ve lived in flats where the garden belonged to the ground floor flat. Is this an access issue? It sounds like a strange arrangement

eddddy

itayshap wrote: »

i relied on my architect but now i not sure this was the only option. how can i be sure?

As a starting point, you could ask the architect which Liverpool City Council Planning policy he is basing his comments on. Then you can read up on that policy.

You can also ask him if he has any details of planning application refusals, because a garden wasn't sub-divided, or conversely applications that received consent without a sub-divided garden. (Or you could search for them yourself).

• Why do you doubt that what your architect is saying is correct?

• Was the architect's opinion very strong on this point?
  • Did you say that you strongly objected to a sub-divided garden?
  • Did you ask if there was scope for a compromise? (e.g. two flats just get a small area for bin storage, bike storage etc, and the ground floor flat gets the rest of the garden)

Tom99

itayshap wrote: »

Thank you for your advice about the freehold issue.
Regarding the planning permission, we originally wanted the garden to be solely associated with the ground floor but our architect insist that it is not possible and that we have to create a shared garden or to divide the garden. so we ended up applying for planning application in which we divided the garden for each flat. i relied on my architect but now i not sure this was the only option. how can i be sure?
the house is located in Liverpool.
here is a link to the ground floor plan: https://ibb.co/ctP3hyq

So do the two upstairs flats have to come out of their front door, walk along a shared alleyway then open a (presumably locked?) a garden gate and then another (locked?) garden gate before they can reach their little bit of garden?
The upstairs flat gardens will probably never be used as gardens and become overgrown with weeds and brambles.
You should have had a pre-application meeting with the planning department to establish their requirements.
It might still be worth looking into a re-arrangement with a shared bin and cycle store next to the shared path but the rest of the garden going with the ground floor.

Owain_Moneysaver

itayshap wrote: »

we ended up applying for planning application in which we divided the garden for each flat.

That's what you must do then.

If you want to do differently you must make a new/amended planning application.

I presume you're required under planning policies to provide bin stores and cycle stores, and a certain amount of grassed space or permeable drainage surface.

Personally I would put a small paved patio outside Flat 1's kitchen and bedroom windows for privacy, and have communal bin and cycle stores and the rest of the area gravelled with a low maintenance shrub border. It would be helpful if your plan showed all Flat 1's windows/doors and not the new ones.

Handkerchief-sized lawns are a maintenance nightmare as no flat will want to own a lawnmower but your plans require 3 lawns to be mown.

Moving the access further back down the alley is unattractive and inconvenient. Is the alley lit?