PLANS for a block of 21 apartments in Leominster have been refused.

The proposal would have seen an apartment block built on land north of Pinsley Mill, between houses fronting on to Pinsley Road and the railway line.

An access road would have joined with Pinsley Road south-west of the mill.

Leominster councillor Roger Hunt told Herefordshire Council's northern area sub-planning committee: "I am not excited about this development.

"It is over-development of an area and will change the lives of the people whose gardens back on to the site, and traffic is already a horrendous problem in Pinsley Road."

Planning officers said the density of the proposed development was 84 dwellings per hectare, considerably higher than recommended in Herefordshire's Unitary Development Plan (UDP) but not considered appropriate as flats were designed to provide a higher density of living accommodation.

Coun Keith Grumbly said the density had been "dragged from south-east London into one of our attractive market towns".

Coun Kay Swinburne, for Ledbury, said the proposal was irresponsible overdevelopment.

"I hope that is not the way market towns are going, because I wouldn't want that in my market town."

The application was refused on the grounds of overdevelopment, the impact it would have on neighbours and poor access.

It was not referred to the full planning committee because members objected to the details of the application, not the idea of the site being developed.