Living Hope has submitted amended plans for its proposed new church in Douglas.

And demolition at the Finch Hill site - carried out without planning consent but then approved retrospectively - has enabled what would have been a split-level ground floor to be a single-level one instead.

It seems, then, that the demolition has worked in the applicant’s favour.

Work on Living Hope’s proposed new church in Douglas was halted last month after the planning committee unanimously rejected its revised application.

Living Hope had submitted an amended application for Removals House to become a place of worship (PA25/90568/B) following an investigation into concerns that buildings on the site had been demolished without planning consent.

It also applied for registered building consent for the demolition (25/90568/B).

But while the planning committee approved the demolition, it unanimously refused the main application.

Planning chair Rob Callister described it as the ‘worst abuse of planning regulation and legislation’ he had seen.

Now Living Hope Community Church Ltd has submitted a ‘minor changes’ application (25/90850/MCH).

This includes amendments to internal floor levels and external terrace levels with associated entrance steps and ramps, and alteration to rear site bank retention.

In a cover letter, the applicant’s architects said: ‘The proposed amendments represent an improvement for building users, particularly those with ambulant or accessible needs.

‘Following on-site demolition and a review of ground conditions by the civil and structural engineer, it was determined that it is viable to achieve a single-level internal space.’

The overall height of the building will be unchanged.

Living Hope’s original application was for the renovation and conversion of the former music shop on Finch Road.

But the works as carried out saw the complete demolition of two of the three linked buildings.

The project’s architects said a section of wall had been ‘over-demolished’ because of structural concerns.