George Michael’s sister wins planning battle over singer’s rundown £10m London mansion as she’s granted permission to cut down backyard timber regardless of protests from locals
George Michael‘s sister has won a planning battle to restore the late singer’s £10million London mansion – despite angry complaints from neighbours.
Yioda Panayiotou, who is the Wham! star’s only living sibling, has been granted permission to chop down trees at the property in upmarket Hampstead.
Photos published by MailOnline last year revealed the multi-million-pound home had fallen into a state of disrepair following George’s death on Christmas Day 2016.
Yioda, however, is now restoring the property with extensive renovation works currently underway.
And in January this year landscape designers submitted plans to fell or heavily prune nine trees that had become a ‘threat’ to the home.
But the proposals came under fierce opposition from an angry neighbour and a community group in two letters sent within the space of two days.
In the first, the Redington Frognal Neighbourhood Forum [RFNF] branded the application as ‘regrettable’.
The group said on February 16: ‘Any loss of mature trees which provide habitat for wildlife is regrettable.
George Michael’s first superstar home — acquired in 1987 – is being treated to a dazzling revamp by his only surviving sister, Yioda Panayiotou
George bought the pad, which is around the corner from celebs such as Harry Styles and Lewis Capaldi , back in 1987 and lived in it for a number of years
Pictures submitted to Camden Council’s planning portal show works underway at the property
‘The need for maintenance is recognised, but should not be undertaken during the nesting season.’
It added that the trees are of particular importance as the property is located ‘in an area with much underground water’.
Then four days later, the group once again lambasted the plans on the basis of previous planning applications.
It wrote: ‘Having now checked the history of intent to fell notifications over the past years, it is very concerning that three mature forest trees have been lost: two poplars and a sycamore.’
The RFNF subsequently called for two of the felled trees to be replaced as part of the plans.
Moreover an angry neighbour also objected to the ‘alarming’ plans.
Harlan Zimmerman wrote on the public planning portal: ‘There have already been a large number of trees felled in this property and the adjoining one.
‘It is alarming and suspicious that so many more are now being targeted.
‘Also, I am concerned that there is no real description of the work planned to reduce foliage between this property and adjoining properties, such as my family’s.
New photos show scaffolding erected around the outside of the multi-million-pound home
Pictured: George’s home in Goring, Oxfordshire, where he died on Christmas Day 2016
Built to a futuristic design in the mid-1970s, the house was ransacked in George Michael’s absence in 2002
‘This is important for privacy and noise reduction.’
However, Camden Council has given the plans the go-ahead anyway, saying the impacted trees are ‘not visible’ or of ‘historical importance’.
George bought the Hampstead pad, which is around the corner from celebs such as Harry Styles and Lewis Capaldi, back in 1987 and lived in it for a number of years.
But the site was later abandoned as the singer chose to split his time between his country home in Goring, Oxfordshire, and a mansion down the road in Highgate.
His sister Yioda inherited the Hampstead home as part of George’s £98million fortune following his tragic death on Christmas Day 2016 at the age of 53.
She previously vowed to restore the property to what her architect described as a ‘habitable’ condition.
Her plans for the property involve flattening a ‘leaning’ eight-metre high tree and an 11-metre evergreen thuja tree that is ‘growing within close proximity of the building’.
Developers also asked for permission to fell a 13-metre mature Leyland cypress due to its location near the property.
Yioda’s team also wants to cut back the branches of a large tree that are hanging over garages at the site.
George bought the pad, which is around the corner from celebs such as Harry Styles and Lewis Capaldi , back in 1987 and lived in it for a number of years
Photo submitted to Camden Council’s planning portal shows works underway at the mansion
It comes after permission was sought last year to remove a water tank from the roof, as well as replacing the roof in its entirety, along with the crumbling cladding.
There were also plans to convert two garages into living quarters ‘with a more traditional house frontage’ which would ‘reinstate the character of the house’.
New decking is to be installed around the main house so that it wraps around to a bedroom at the rear.
The window on the upper ground floor will be raised so that it enjoys a fuller view of the garden.
The £10million property, which was built in a futuristic design in the mid-1970s, was ransacked in George’s absence in 2002.
Raiders stole jewellery, designer clothes and paintings, as well as family heirlooms bequeathed to the Wham! star by his beloved mother, who died of cancer in 1997.
It was previously revealed that George was embroiled in a planning battle to stop a developer knocking down a mansion at the bottom of the property’s garden before his death.
Plans were submitted to Camden Council to replace a 16-bedroom Arts & Craft home with eight ‘large and prime quality’ flats complete with an underground car park.
The window on the upper ground floor will be raised so that it enjoys a fuller view of the garden
Yioda is intent on restoring the property to what her architect describes as a ‘habitable’ condition, and seeks to remove a water tank from the roof
In August 2016, law firm Russells, which acted on behalf of the singer, wrote: ‘The development will have a negative impact on the character of the local community.
‘The proposal’s size and much increased footprint together with the loss of trees and green space sets an undesirable precedent for future development which will have an adverse impact on the area and is out of keeping with surrounding improvements to local buildings.
‘It will be visually overbearing. The underground car parking is excessive as the property clearly already benefits from off street parking facilities.’
