A CONTROVERSIAL housing development above Penarth Marina will be investigated by the council after it allegedly breached its planning permission.

Work is under way to build 30 luxury apartments in three blocks heading down the steep embankment overlooking Penarth’s Custom House restaurant and Marina, with views across Cardiff Bay.

The plans include the demolition of Northcliffe Lodge – a five-bed mansion which was reportedly once worth £1.2m.

The Vale of Glamorgan Council has now confirmed it is investigating the development, named Sainte Adresse Apartments, after receiving a complaint that it’s not being build according to plans approved in September 2017.

The original plans for a larger development at Northcliffe Lodge were rejected by the council in January 2017 due to its “excessive size” and for its “failure to preserve or enhance the nearby conservation area or listed buildings”.

Opponents of the scheme have also said previously the 30 flats would “overwhelm” the area and cause parking issues.

Celtic Developments agreed to pay around £270,000 to the council for affordable housing elsewhere in the Vale.

Council officers determined the usual requirement for 40 per cent of the flats at Northcliffe Lodge to be affordable could be achieved “due to the particular characteristics of the site”.

A Vale of Glamorgan Council spokesman said: “We have received a complaint that this development is not being built in accordance with approved planning conditions and an enforcement investigation is currently being conducted to establish the facts of the matter.”