A WELSH Government planning chief is set to examine residents’ long-running appeal to stop people walking in front of their homes on the banks of the Mawddach Estuary.

Residents of Mawddach Crescent, near Arthog, have been fighting a decision by Gwynedd Council’s planning committee to defy officers’ recommendations and register a footpath across their land in 2018.

After the decision, Gwynedd Council were set to begin the legal process of registering the footpath as a public right of way (PROW).

But the homeowners appealed to Planning and Environment Decisions Wales – an official arbitrator in cases of disputed applications – soon after the decision.

The public inquiry into the appeal will last from next Tuesday (14 February) to Friday and will involve several site visits by the appointed planning inspector - with a verdict expected at a later date.

Owners of the luxurious homes have argued walkers have been prevented from using the path for decades after the installation of ‘no entry’ signs and gates to clarify the road is private.

But the supporters for the footpath, led by applicant Huw Roberts, have argued there has been right of way - and ‘unhindered access’ - for walkers in front of the homes for decades.

Independent councillor for Arthog a Llangelynnin, Louise Hughes, told the Cambrian News: “The dispute over the footpath has been rumbling along for eight-and-a-half years now. The inquiry will allow us to resolve the issue once and for all so that people finally know where they stand.”