RELIEVED residents are celebrating after Dudley planners refused a second bid to set up a car wash business at a Halesowen pub.

Officers threw out the proposal for The Full Moon car park, Hurst Green Road, without putting it before councillors after a deluge of objections from nearby residents.

Two petitions signed in total by 156 protesters, 51 letters of objections from local people and two from ward councillors were sent to the planning department.

The hand car washing and valeting facility was refused because of the “unacceptable levels of noise and disturbance” it would create in a mainly residential area.

Planners also believed the polycarbonate screens to retain water spray within the site would be an “incongruous feature” in an otherwise open area.

They stated the applicant, Quamil Aliat, had failed to provide sufficient information for them to be able to fully assess whether there would sufficient off-street parking for customers using the pub and proposed car wash.

Objectors feared the development would create more traffic congestion, increase noise and the risk of accidents, cause flooding during heavy rain, create an eyesore and a health hazard from chemical use.

Halesowen North councillor Karen Shakespeare, who had objected to the plan, said she was “delighted that people power had prevailed”.

She added: “This is really good news for all local residents, who like me felt this would be totally unsuitable for the area and thought this was just a car wash too far in a mainly residential area.

“I am a great advocate of small businesses and will happily support people going it alone but that can never be at the expense of local residents’ enjoyment of their homes and local area being shattered by inappropriate businesses in the wrong place.”