FRUSTRATED residents campaigning against a huge warehouse built just metres from their gardens say they will take their fight to the top.

Members of the Grange Residents Association will be submitting a complaint to the local government ombudsman over the “intrusive” Kondor warehouse built just behind their houses in Grange Road.

They claim the council should have refused the application for the 46ft metal clad structure, which they say has impacted on their health. They have already raised strong concerns about the loss of light and proximity of the building to the homes as well as the height of a proposed bund to screen the building.

Now they say they have had enough, especially with ongoing issues like the bright security lights and noise from air conditioning and extractor fan units.

Linda Clarke, chairman of the residents’ group said: “When those lights come on its like Blackpool illuminations.

“I just want to live in my house that I have paid for and worked for and lived quietly in until now.

“I don’t want to live here anymore; my quality of life has gone down and nobody is listening.”

She is supported by fellow residents, who claim they feel particularly aggrieved because they had assurances when a similar structure was built further away on the industrial land in 2010 that no building of similar height would be permitted closer to their homes.

The residents’ main complaints to the ombudsman focus on the applicant’s report and officer’s report, the distance of the building from residential properties, light deprivation and overlooking.

They have also raised concerns over the meeting itself.

Ward councillor David Jones said: “I feel that the residents have had very unsatisfactory treatment. The committee were not given a fair understanding of the shadow and how it would affect the residents’ homes.

“I asked the committee on behalf of the residents to ‘lighten their darkness’ – far from doing this, Kondor have now added everlasting noise to the dark.”

n Christchurch council’s planning committee refused to grant retrospective permission for the air conditioning units at a meeting on Thursday, February 27.

Kondor refused to comment on the decision.