PLANS have been submitted to convert a vacant former convenience store in Teignmouth into eight serviced apartments.

Cloud9 Investments Ltd has applied to Teignbridge Council for a change of use at 137 Bitton Park Road, Teignmouth, along with a first-floor extension and associated external alterations.

The site was previously occupied by the Dillons convenience store, later operated as a One Stop shop, but is currently vacant.

The proposal would create eight serviced apartments, providing short-term accommodation.

A planning statement submitted with the application says the development would bring the building ‘back into beneficial use’, while making extensive use of the existing structure and footprint.

It adds that the proposed accommodation would operate on a managed short-term basis and complement four serviced apartments already approved in an adjoining part of the former commercial premises.

A previous planning application, reference 26/00173/FUL, was approved by Teignbridge Council in April and allowed for the conversion of part of the site into four serviced apartments.

The latest proposal relates to 137 Bitton Park Road and would provide a further eight units, including additional first-floor accommodation created through an extension.

The planning statement says: ‘The proposed development seeks to bring the remaining vacant part of the former commercial premises on Bitton Park Road back into active and beneficial use through the provision of eight serviced apartments for short-term accommodation’.

It adds that the design has been developed to create a ‘coherent development’ which respects the scale, character and appearance of the existing building and surrounding street scene.

According to the application, the scheme would make use of the established footprint of the building, with alterations focused on adapting it for its proposed new use.

The planning statement describes the proposal as a ‘sustainable and proportionate evolution of the site’, arguing that it would bring a long-vacant building back into active use while respecting the character and function of the surrounding area.

Teignbridge Council is expected to make a decision on the application by November 26.

To view the plans in full, and to comment on the application, visit Teignbridge Council’s planning portal and enter ‘26/01517/FUL’ into the search-box.