HOTELIERS in Llandudno with UPVC windows more than four years old have escaped tough planning rules.
Under new guidance issued to hoteliers by Conwy County Borough Council over the use of uPVC windows in the town’s conservation area no action will be taken on double glazed windows installed more than four years ago in non-listed properties.
Instead of being ordered to rip them out owners will be encouraged to install timber windows when the time comes to change them.
The UPVC window debate began earlier this year, with many hoteliers fearful they would be forced to replace heat-retaining windows with Victorian style windows.
After a meeting with businesses, Conwy County Borough Council has now issued clarification.
For listed buildings in the conservation area, Conwy will seek to have the windows changed to the older style.
Where works have been handled by former owners, the council will ask hoteliers to return to older-style windows when they decide to change their current windows.
The council’s conservation department will also draft a list of window designs acceptable under the guidelines of the conservation area, that would help hoteliers keep heat in and keep noise out.
The design guide is expected to be available by the end of January.
Michael Thompson, who owns the Can y Bae Hotel on the Promenade, said: “It’s a step in the right direction. If windows have been changed outside of the conservation area or listed buildings, they are willing to allow the windows to stay until the time that the windows need to be changed.
“It will keep Llandudno looking as it does - nobody wants it to change - but that’s got to be tempered with the modern requirements of people living in the town, and people travelling to the town.”