A campaign has been launched to save a grand historical home from demolition amid fears the surrounding town is “losing its character under concrete and Astroturf.”

Plans were submitted in July for the large 1896 villa on Martindown Road, Whitstable, to be bulldozed and converted into seven detached homes spread across its large garden.

However, more than 100 residents have written to Canterbury City Council’s to oppose the bid to flatten the Victorian property.

The ward’s city councillor, Cllr Naomi Smith (Lab) has “called-in” the decision to CCC’s planning committee, meaning the development will have to be decided at a public meeting.

“The house is a very iconic house in the area, I think probably one of the oldest properties,” she told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS).

“Whilst we desperately need more homes across the district, this house shouldn’t be knocked down.

“The views that people enjoy – there’s an awful lot of enjoyment that people get from the views they get from walking along Martindown road and the space that property gives.

“You can see all the way across to Southend literally.”

Historic England has received three requests to have the property listed to protect it from the possible demolition.

The public body will decide on whether it should be listed, and then pass the information on to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport.

Matthew Cromack of Holme Architecture, speaking on behalf of the applicant, told LDRS: “The house and garden must be sold due to the death of the existing owners who had lived there for 20 years.

“This is an outline application with a view to selling the property for possible development by a third party at a later date.

“The proposal follows the approach of several other three and four bedroom houses built on the adjoining land along Martindown Road in the last 10 years as well as numerous houses fitted in between existing houses in the immediate vicinity.

However, many residents aren’t as enthused by the possibility of the villa being redeveloped, with a Facebook group set up to fight the proposals.

Jason Leaver, who founded the group on Monday, August 21, said that the group has “just exploded in a few days”; now boasting 271 members.

Mr Leaver no longer lives in Kent, but grew up “literally 20 seconds walk from it and I saw it every day for twenty years or so.”

He told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): “It’s a landmark house, everyone knows it.

‘It’s a haven for nature, it’s very important...’

“The garden, which is enormous, is almost a nature reserve.

“There’s some quite unusual trees and plants there, it’s a haven for nature, it’s very important.

“It’s a beautiful house and compared to what might end up being there I think it’s a far better thing visually.

“It’s a piece of history. So much development is going on, can we not keep some of the heritage and history before it’s all gone?” he added.

Writing in to CCC’s planning department, resident Elizabeth Reed wrote: “Whitstable cannot cope with anymore properties crammed into small spaces especially in this beautiful spot.”

She continued: “Whitstable is very quickly losing its character under concrete and Astroturf and that is damaging for all who live here.”

“I think it's criminal to knock down a beautiful house with a perfect view,” wrote Bob Baxter.

“We have enough building going on up in this area now,” he added.

The application will be decided on in a public meeting of CCC’s planning committee in September.