A furious builder has put a giant stone gargoyle of a council leader on his roof as a bitter planning row turned ugly.

Michael Thomas, 71, erected the unusual statues in Trowbridge, Wiltshire after a plan to convert an old pizza takeaway into a three-storey seven-bedroom house in multiple occupation (HMO) was rejected. 

Trowbridge Town Council leader Stewart Palmen had objected to the project and put an enforcement notice in place to halt the building project. 

Mr Thomas has since erected a stone gargoyle of Cllr Palmen on the roof of the building that he was redeveloping. 

The effigy – sporting half-moon spectacles and sticking his tongue out – now adorns the side of the disputed property in the Wiltshire town.

Michael Thomas, 71, erected the gargoyles after his efforts to redevelop a building in Trowbridge were rejected by the local council

The gargoyle, that pokes out of the corner of the building that Mr Thomas had been working on, is designed to resemble Trowbridge Council leader Stewart Palmen

Cllr Palmen mimicked the pose of the gargoyle, seen behind, in Trowbridge

Following objections from Cllr Palmen and local residents, the stop notice was superseded by an enforcement notice in September 2020.

He then applied for planning permission which was refused by Wiltshire Council in June 2022.

The council refused the project saying it ‘detracts from the character and appearance of the area’.

In May this year, an inspector upheld the council’s decision after Mr Thomas launched yet another appeal.

In retaliation, Mr Thomas launched a protest against the council by attaching a banner to the scaffolding around the property.

Mr Thomas has also posted two notices criticising the council, one of which accused it of ‘hindering small businesses / developers’

Mr Thomas has faced repeated problems with trying to redevelop the old pizza takeaway

Cllr Palmen described himself as ‘flattered’ and said that he found it ‘amusing’

The banner read: ‘Wiltshire council invests time and energy in green field developments and long developers outside and around Trowbridge at a profit while actively hindering small building developers trying to fill a need for accommodation for those who do not qualify for the more expensive out of town accommodation.’

The building itself is not listed, but is located in a conservation area.

In June, Mr Thomas said he was even willing to go to prison over the dispute. He said: ‘They don’t follow the rules, they make them up as they go along.

‘If council officers are not following the rules, why should I?

‘I am going to carry on building against their order and allow them to take me to court.

‘I am not afraid of going to jail, I have been jailed twice before and I’m told that these days they have toilets and televisions so I don’t think that it will be a hardship.’

Mr Thomas has been ordered to attend Swindon Magistrates’ Court on October 27 to face a charge of failing to comply with the enforcement notice.

In June, Mr Thomas said he was willing to go to prison over the dispute. He has been ordered to attend Swindon Magistrates’ Court in October

‘I am not afraid of going to jail, I have been jailed twice before and I’m told that these days they have toilets and televisions,’ Mr Thomas said

Michael Thomas said in a statement: ‘In my 49 years building I have placed many planning applications all over the country and 12 appeals. Both the [Wiltshire] council’s refusal and the appeal breached their own guidelines.

‘All work to date has been approved by building control and a structural engineer. Some council’s are difficult to deal with. Wiltshire Council is listed as being one of the worst to work with.’

Mr Thomas added that he would appeal the planning refusal again.