Plans to build a block of flats at Twickenham station will be met with a fight, residents have warned.

The war cry comes after it was suggested up to 170 flats could be built on top of the station as part of a redevelopment project for the site – intended to be finished in time for the 2015 Rugby World Cup.

Ray Thomas, of Mary’s Terrace, which runs alongside the railway line, said he was against another high-rise being built on the site, after permission was granted earlier this year for Regal House to be transformed into a 10-storey hotel.

He said: “We will fight it. It is going to be dreadful [if a block of flats is built].

“They are using the excuse of the World Cup but there is only going to be half a dozen matches played at Twickenham.”

The block of flats was suggested as a possibility for the site in a report submitted to Richmond Council on behalf of Solum Regeneration – a joint venture between Network Rail and Kier Property.

The report, which also proposed a new ticket office, shops and an open space for the station, allowed the council to have its say on the way the company would undertake an environmental assessment required to support a future planning application.

Artist Linda Griffiths said it was about time the station was improved, but feared a block of flats would block the sunset seeping into her workshop on the corner of Mary’s Terrace and Beauchamp Road.

She said: “It would block the sunset and that is the criminal thing.

“I do not think anyone has the right to take that away from me. I am thinking about doing something all along the street that says ‘we love our sunset’.”

However, Twickenham resident Steven Wilson argued a high-rise building could put the station on the map.

He said: “I do not know why people fear high-rise buildings so much, when done sympathetically they can be landmarks that can put somewhere on the map.

“At present this area is an eyesore, and there is now a chance to make it an attractive, environmentally friendly open space with lots of greenery.”

A spokesman from Solum Regeneration said: “We are working on our plans and hope to be able to consult with residents in the next few weeks.”

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