Former petrol station will return to motoring use with new life as a car valeting business

Planners at Rotherham Council have granted permission for the site – last used as a financial services building – to be used for a car valeting business.

Several people raised objections about the proposals, at Rawmarsh Hill, Parkgate, because the area has heavy traffic and poor air quality, but council officials said they did not believe the new business would make a significant contribution to those issues.

An in-out arrangement had been planned for the site, with vehicles emerging onto Hollybush Street after entering from Rawmarsh Hill.

A stipulation has been written into permission granted by the council’s Planning Board that jetwashing should only take place at the rear of the site, where there would be no prospect of the public being affected by spray.

Councillors who approved the decision were told highways officers were satisfied the development would not cause disturbance problems in the area, with opening hours between 8am and 6pm meaning it would be operating only when the area was already busy.

Coun Bob Walsh told the meeting: “The more I looked into the detail, the more my concerns ebbed away. It is at the high end (of the trade). The vehicle goes into the jetwash, then comes out for detailed cleaning and when it leaves the site is absolutely shiny.”