Councillors have refused to grant planning permission to a development residents see as “crowded and overbearing”.

Hertsmere Borough Council rejected an application to demolish a house in Lodge Avenue in Elstree and build a house on the site, and four further detached houses on the land behind.

Speaking during a meeting of the council’s planning committee on Thursday, planning officer Maria Demetri said the application had been recommended for refusal.

She said officers believed the distances between the houses and the boundaries were too small, that they would block windows of surrounding houses and did not reflect the pattern of existing cul-de-sacs. 

Resident Edward Gregory, who represented those opposing the development, said the plans would adversity impact the “amenity, light and privacy” of neighbouring properties.

He added: “This is an overdevelopment of the site, which damages the character of the area and will cause an increase the danger of road accidents.

“Adverse impacts on surrounding houses including a blockage of light on the north side, a replacement of views of verdant countryside with densely packed houses and a loss of privacy.”

He said the houses were 60 per cent smaller than those in Lodge Avenue, meaning developers were effectively squeezing in five houses where there was space for three.

Mr Gregory added the plans, which included a four way interchange with Lodge Avenue and Bishops Avenue, would exacerbate problems with traffic flow and increase the risk of accidents on a driving test route.

He said: “Allowing a squashed, alien development of this sort will harm the character of the area, will reduce or even destroy the amenities of properties and will aggravate traffic problems.”

Councillors unanimously voted to turn the application down.