A THREE-STOREY residential care home planned for the site where a large tree was destroyed will have devastating effect on the local area, concerned residents claim.

Sophia Gray, 40, a sports nutritionist of Chadwick Avenue, Chingford, fears the proposed building on nearby Hatch Lane will “dwarf” other buildings and cut off natural light.

She said: “We’re so close to Epping Forest and developers are trying to encroach on it as much as they can.

“This is a private development - we’re not talking about a council care hime that could really benefit the community.”

The application from developers Aquasta Ltd. to demolish the former Prince of Wales pub and replace it with the home was registered on January 12, even though a similar development is already under construction just yards away.

And mystery now surrounds the felling of a eucalyptus tree on the site - still lying in the grounds of the pub after being cut down on Christmas eve.

Ms Gray said: “All the residents were up in arms about it. The tree must have been at least 40 or 50 years old. It was a big part of the garden and it blocked out the view of the petrol station.”

She also claims she was told a Tree Preservation Order (TPO) had been placed on the tree in question but that when she visited the planning office this month, no record could be found.

She said: “I was told it was all sorted but apparently it never had the order.”

Loss of trees was also one of the planning considerations to be taken into account before the application is approved.

John Kettley, a planning consultant working on behalf of the site owner, said: “I can confirm that that there are no Tree Preservation Orders at the site of the Prince of Wales public house.

“In the design and access statement, which accompanied the planning application, it was stated that no perimeter trees would be removed, and as far as we are aware, that has always been the site owner’s intention.”

Ms Gray is now planning to start a petition against the development, with the backing of the local Tenants’ Management Organisation, to protest against the development.