ALMOST 30 residents crowded into Falmouth's council chamber on Monday night to hear town councillors back their calls to reject plans which would obliterate "iconic" views of the harbour.

Councillors were faced with an application which seeks planning consent to build an extension to Gwel an Porth, which currently sits below the wall on Harbour Terrace. The proposals not only include the extension but a 60cm wooden fence which would run along the boundary wall.

The scheme is being vehemently opposed by residents of both Harbour Terrace and Erisey Terrace, many of whom attended the meeting of the town council's planning committee.

Their spokesman, Paul Hobson, said the two terraces were built in the mid-1800s and are a "fine example" of what is described in the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Urban Survey of 2005 as "the terraced suburbs that define Falmouth, both from land and sea."

He pointed out that the report demanded "detailed supervision of future change through the planning system by fully informed by the potential impact of new build or alteration on character, quality and sense of place."

Mr Hobson said the proposal would set a precedent and remove a historic feature of the town. "We urge you, the guardians and custodians of this unique site, to reject the application," he pleaded with councillors.

The residents have the support of Cornwall Council member for the area, Hanna Toms, who said: "This is a proposal that if approved will damage the conservation area within which it falls, would change the street scene beyond recognition and set a worrying precedent."

Before it debated the application, the committee was told that the Cornwall Council case officer had approached the applicant's agent and asked if he would like to withdraw the application, but had had no response.

Town councillors all agreed the views from the terraces should be protected and voted unanimously to recommend the application be refused by Cornwall Council. The grounds they gave were that the massing would not be in keeping with the street scene and would mar the view from the road and from the sea, and the development would be detrimental to the conservation area and be over-development.

Councillor Vicky Eva said: "I think it is over-development of the site, albeit to me that is not the main thing. The loss of the view from the highway is the biggest impact. We have a double whammy - it would ruin not just the scene from the actual terrace, but anybody out on a boat looking up would see a monstrous building."

Councillor Alan Jewell added: "If the (proposed) building was the same height of the existing, we probably would not have an issue with it. I think people and entitled to that view. By the number of people here tonight, it shows local support is not there. We have to stop this or it will set a precedent."