“Much improved” plans for a Woking industrial estate that have “taken into account the impact on closest residents and the rest of the area” have been granted.

The 1960s Goldsworth Road Industrial Estate will be torn down and replaced with a new self-storage facility, much to the relief of residents in Mabel Street who had battled previous efforts to modernise the site.

Previous bids would have turned their quiet road into a thoroughfare for the site, but this will be now be closed off after the approval of the Safestore unit.

The plans, put out to consultation, gained 41 letters of support from the community also said Safestore’s vision was “more suited to neighbours needs” and “much improved compared to the last application”. 

Bankrupt Woking Borough Council, which owns the land, has been looking to offload the site for some time in an effort to reduce its financial mess.

The approved storage block will stand about 10.4metres high.

A last minute push to have restrictions limiting the use of mezzanine floors was rejected.

Although council officers said the company was free to return with a fresh application seeking to install internal floors.

Mezzanine floors within storage units can be rented out to small businesses as short-term office space. This can create extra traffic around sites. The company said the flooring was key to the financial viability of the project.

Matt Guest, acquisition and development manager for Safestore, spoke in favour of the plans.

He said there had been lengthy pre-application work with the council on the plans and that Mabel Street residents backed the bid as it would moved activity and traffic away from their road.

He told the Tuesday, January 13 planning committee: “The result of our collaboration with the residents and officers is a high quality, low density development that regenerates a long-standing brownfield site.

“Safe storage sites generate very little traffic and operate within limited hours, making it far more compatible with the neighbouring uses of the site.”

Councillor Rob Leach (Liberal Democrats: St Johns) said: “I am particularly pleased to see that the application has effectively closed off Mabel Street from development and made residents’ lives easier as a result.

“I am concerned about the request to rescind (the mezzanine conditions) mainly because we are being bounced into this at the last minute, and I’m wondering why this condition wasn’t queried earlier?

“And if it were rescinded, could this lead to an increased demand for parking outside the site?”

The plans, with restrictions, were unanimously approved.