AN appeal has been lodged after plans to put a digital advertising screen on a busy road through Wrexham were refused.

Vivid Outdoor Media applied to replace an existing billboard on Pentre Felin in the town centre with an illuminated display in December last year.

However, permission was refused by Wrexham Council as officers said it would detract from the appearance of the area.

Concerns were also raised about the impact on two nearby listed buildings – the former Island Green Brewery and the Railway Sports and Social Club.

An appeal has now been submitted to the Planning Inspectorate in a bid to have the decision overturned.

It comes as the company has argued it would not harm the area, highlighting the level of light generated at night by Island Green Shopping Park.

In an appeal statement, representatives said: “The appeal site is located in an urban area of mixed use, where commercial uses and other urban characteristics would be expected to prevail, and these would typically co-exist alongside residential uses.

“The appeal proposal does not represent a significant incursion in to a residential setting and does not compromise the amenity of the residents of the small number of residential properties in the surrounding area.

“The listed building of the former Island Green Brewery is in close proximity to other sources of illumination from street lighting, commercial signage and vehicle lighting which emit a considerably higher intensity of light than the static illumination contained in the appeal proposal.

“Illuminated signage and advertisements in a location such as the appeal site is not unusual and is exactly the kind of place where one would expect to find them.”

They added: “The only real differences between the existing and proposed advertisement displays are the introduction of digital illumination and the frequency that an advert changes via a digital display.

“The appellant considers that these differences are not unacceptable differences from an amenity perspective.”

The appeal will be decided at a later date by an inspector appointed by the Welsh Government.