A coastal hotel that built the wrong type of roof on an extension will have to tear it down and replace it with a sloped one.
Prior to the pandemic, the Dormy House Hotel, which looks out onto Cromer Road in West Runton, had been given permission for a series of works, including an extension.
But when it came to building the roof, faced with money issues due to Covid, the developer built a flat rather than pitched roof.
A retrospective application for the flat roof was heard by North Norfolk District Council's (NNDC) development committee on Thursday, with officers recommending it be rejected.
Council officer Colin Reuben told councillors the roof was inappropriate and needed a "more sympathetic visual appearance".
Steve Brundle, the owner of the hotel, said the company had been severely impacted by Covid and needed to make savings.
He said: “The timber frame company suggested a flat roof rather than a pitched roof, saving over £6,500.
“At this time we contacted the planning office several times but it was some two weeks before we received a reply.
“With a large hole in our east wall leaving the east side exposed and the rest being nearing completion we took the decision to go with the flat roof.”
Ward councillor Sarah Butikofer said she wanted to support the business but described it as a "difficult" situation.
Ms Butikofer argued the extension went against NNDC’s strategies and design guides.
She said: “We cannot allow our policies to be ignored, if we do why do we have them?”
Richard Kershaw echoed Ms Butikofer’s comments, saying he would like to see a situation where the extension is resolved – either by replacing the roof or bringing it down.
An NNDC legal advisor said if it was turned down officers would work with Mr Brundle to fix the issue before considering "proportionate" enforcement action.
Councillors voted to refuse the application.
Speaking after the meeting, Mr Brundle said he has already arranged to speak with officers next week to work out a way forward and install a pitched roof.
"I was shocked, we had tried to make effort to talk to planning officers during Covid," he said.
"We had that big hole in our wall, we had to continue, I had no choice, we didn't think it was controversial."
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