Jimmy Page Loses Neighborhood Battle With Robbie Williams

After months of public dispute, pop singer Robbie Williams has finally earned permission to remodel his west London mansion, despite strenuous objections from neighbor Jimmy Page.

Williams, who lives next door to Page, has been involved with an on-going debate since January over his plans to make radical changes to a multi-million dollar home he bought from the late Michael Winner in 2013. Page, a resident of the historic neighborhood since the early '70s, argued that the nature of Williams' planned work – which includes changes to every floor, removing a pool and gym, replacing the roof of a glass studio and rebuilding a garage – could create vibrations that might damage the former Led Zeppelin guitarist's nearby home, dubbed Tower House.

Page hired structural engineers, architects and town planners to argue before local decision makers against the renovations. It seemed, for a moment back in March, that he'd made a compelling enough case, when Williams withdrew his proposal. But then the singer, who rose to fame with Take That, submitted new plans – starting another round of objections from Page.

It didn't do any good. Both the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea planning committee, in meetings this week, ruled in Robbie Williams' favor after consulting with Historic England, a governmental department charged with designating and protecting legacy buildings and monuments. "The vibration monitoring information states that there would be no harm to Tower House, which has an important interior decorative scheme and finishes," their report states. "Historic England has advised that the proposed works at the application site are modest and occur a reasonable distance away from the Tower House, and that there is no risk of the Tower House being affected by ground movement as a result of the proposed works."

They are, however, requiring Williams to put several measures in place to protect Jimmy Page's property from vibrations. Any excavations, for instance, must be done by hand. Hand tools must be used to crack existing slabs.

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