The Amherst guesthouse in Russel Street near the town centre is a semi-detached house, which has been divided into seven short-stay rooms and is situated next to the Russell Street Surgery.
The guesthouse website offers a large double twin bedroom, standard double and small double bedrooms on a short-term basis, with stays starting at £50 per night.
But there are indications that the owner or any future owner wants to turn it into private rented accommodation instead.
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A businessman had applied to convert the guesthouse into a six-bedroom home of multiple occupation (HMO).
Each room would have contained a double bed and an ensuite shower toilet, with future occupants making use of two fridges, freezers, hobs, double ovens, microwaves and sinks.
The refused floor plan for the conversion of the Amherst guesthouse in Russell Street, Reading from a seven bed guesthouse into six rental flats. (Image: Kyle Seeley Associates)
On the first floor, the existing fourth bedroom would have been converted into a communal room with a sofa and two comfy chairs.
However, the guesthouse will not be converted any time soon as the project has been rejected by Reading Borough Council’s planning department.
The refusal notice states: “The proposed development fails to meet the required living standards for an HMO due to inadequate and poorly positioned communal areas and inadequate provision for refuse, recycling and cycle storage, harmful to the amenity of future occupiers and the character of the area.”
You can view the refused application by typing reference PL/24/1553 into the council’s planning portal.
The project was rejected on Friday, February 14.
