Hove residents oppose three-storey office block next door

Sixteen objections have been lodged against a revised planning application for a three-storey office block at Palmer and Harvey House, 106-112 Davigdor Road in Hove.

Neighbours argue the scheme would block light and views, limit access, and is an overdevelopment of a site already considered cramped.

The application seeks to amend plans that were first approved in September 2022, with the most recent submission including a basement, changes to the building’s elevations, rooftop solar panels, and revised landscaping.

Gradino with its staggered balconies, left, and the converted Palmer and Harvey House, right - both of which neighbour the proposed site (Image: NQ)

The objections come mainly from residents of nearby developments, including Gradino and Palmer and Harvey House, who believe they should have been told more when they purchased their homes.

Tony Binns, a leaseholder at Gradino, said he and his wife Marijke Lewis decided to buy their one-bedroom flat in December 2024 after speaking to Oakley Property, the agents marketing the development.

Mr Binns, a former professor of geography at Sussex University, said he spoke to Oakley Property about the original planning permission for the three-storey building next door and believes he should have been given more information about the possibility of it going ahead.

"A lot of other people are in the same position — they probably wouldn't have bought a flat here."

Tony Binns and his wife Marijke Lewis are opposed to the plans for a three-storey office block (Image: NQ)

In response, a spokesman for Oakley Property said: "In accordance with standard industry practice, we would have disclosed all of the information that was available to us, at the time of the sale."

The original planning permission was granted before either Gradino or the converted Palmer and Harvey House had any occupants, meaning current residents had no opportunity to raise concerns before approval was given.

A view of the proposed site from a residence at the neighbouring Gradino block (Image: Supplied)

Mr Binns said: "You had a planning application that had no objections from local residents — because there weren't any."

The new application has been submitted by Nicolaudie UK Limited, which purchased the site in 2025 and plans to use the offices for its UK headquarters.

The 2026 application form records that development had "already started" as of September 11, 2025 — just two days before the three-year deadline for commencement passed. The date of that work means the original planning permission remained valid.

A drawing included in the planning application showing the proposed office block, with Gradino on the left (Image: SHW Architecture)

Residents argue the area has changed significantly since permission was first granted and that their views should now be taken into account.

One objection stated the site is now surrounded by occupied homes including Gradino, Lyon Quarter, and residential properties within both Palmer and Harvey House and Preece House, meaning "hundreds of residents" would now be impacted by the scheme.

Several objectors, including Mr Binns, believe the plot is too small for a three-storey building and have suggested it would be better used as a landscaped garden or communal green space.

They say this would be more appropriate given the number of empty office buildings already available in Brighton and Hove.

An image of the site from June 2023, when Gradino was still being built, and Parmer and Harvey House was being converted to residential usage (Image: Google)

Another common complaint among objectors relates to pedestrian access.

Many Palmer House residents say construction works have blocked their only safe, step-free route to the main entrance.

This has forced people to use an unlit slip road that is shared with car park traffic, objectors claim, raising safety concerns.

The consultation period for the revised application (BH2026/01622) will remain open until August 13.

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