Old water tower in Burton Green could become holiday accommodation

The tower in Long Meadow Farm off Hob Lane would also see more floor space created in the conversion.

The tower would house two bedrooms, with one an the ground floor and one on the first floor, and the tower’s exterior would be painted either white or cream.

In a letter to Warwick District Council, the applicant said: “The tower is deteriorating. It is constructed of reinforced concrete.

The concrete is spalling and occasionally relatively large lumps of concrete fall from the tower.

“There are several options. The tower could be demolished but it would then be a loss to the heritage of Kenilworth.

“It could be repaired but this would be expensive and although removing the danger of falling debris would serve little functional purpose.

“The final option is to repair the tower and convert it into habitable occupation.

“It is with this last option in mind that this application is forwarded for consideration of change of use and conversion of the tower to holiday accommodation.

“Kenilworth is short of rural holiday accommodation and such a conversion would fill a need for further tourism in the area.”

The tower lies within green belt land and any conversion could restrict the openness of the land, but the applicant believes the close proximity of trees around the tower means the area is not very open in the first place.

Burton Green Parish Council have not objected to the plans, but remain neutral.

A previous application to convert the water tower in February 2015 was refused. The district council said it would ‘radically alter the scale and character of the original water tower structure, detrimentally affecting the character and openness of this rural locality.’

It said this was due to ‘the extent of proposed extensions and associated bulk and mass projecting beyond the structural confines of the tower.’

The tower dates back to 1935 and supplied Burton Green and Kenilworth through gravity due to it being the highest point for several miles.

It became redundant in the early 1940s when the supply of water was taken over by the larger tower off Cromwell Lane in Burton Green.

The tower was sold to the farm in the 1980s and has remained in their ownership since then.

It is unknown when a decision will be made on the plans by the district council.