PLANNERS have delayed making a decision on whether a Victorian house should be demolished and replaced with 12 luxury apartments.

Bolton councillors agreed yesterday that they needed another look at the site in Victoria Road, Heaton, before making up their minds.

Local residents are opposed to developers William Hargreaves's plans to knock down Highfield house, saying the new building will be out of character with the surrounding area and lead to increased traffic.

Council leader Cllr Bob Howarth told the planning committee that he was concerned the new building would be bigger than the house and would be too close to an adjoining home.

He called for another inspection to see exactly where on the site the new building would stand.

Cllr Joe Hickson said the proposed building should be further away from the neighbouring house and made smaller so that it did not require trees in the grounds to be felled. He added that houses would be more suitable to the area than apartments.

And Cllr Norman Critchley labelled the proposed development "hideous".

The controversial plans have been vigorously opposed by residents who held a demonstration outside the threatened house earlier this week.

Condemned

The vicar of Christ Church, Heaton, the Rev David Griffiths, has also condemned the plans.

But William Hargreaves insists it has made strenuous efforts to ensure the scheme is sympathetic to its surroundings.

The firm says the plan is a substantial improvement on a version turned down by councillors in May. It had agreed to fund traffic calming measures and redesign the apartment block so that it did not overlook neighbouring properties.