Even Sherlock Holmes would have had trouble solving the riddle of the round window, the planning committee and the boutique owner who nearly went bust.

For two years Ali Mughal has fought to keep the convex window she fitted in the front of her womenswear shop, Acacia, in Gloucester Road, Brighton, after residents of North Laine complained it was out of keeping with the conservation area.

The case has finally come to a close as work to rip out the perspex porthole is underway.

The shop is closed until Saturday while a complete revamp is carried out.

The top two floors are being transformed into a luxurious beauty and massage parlour.

Mrs Mughal, 39, from Preston Park, said: "I am sad about it and everybody who has walked past has said they are disappointed to see the round window go. I pulled myself up by my bootlaces and decided if the window was going to change I would give the shop a complete makeover."

The £2,000 window was branded too outrageous by North Laine residents when Mrs Mughal fitted it in August 2003 without planning permission.

Brighton and Hove City Council refused to approve retrospective permission and turned down a subsequent application to create a rectangular frame around it.

Government planning inspectors dismissed an appeal and ordered Mrs Mughal to tear out the window. The whole process cost her £5,000 and nearly put her out of business.

She said: "There were several occasions when I thought why am I doing this? I should just close the door and walk away. But I have put so much time and effort into it and so many people begged me to stay."

The North Laine shopping area is renowned for its unique appearance. It includes shopfronts decorated with giant pairs of glitzy glasses or painted with black and white stripes, while another has cardboard cut-outs of women clad in PVC.

Mrs Mughal added: "My shop front was one of the most subtle in the street but it was the one the council chose to pick on. The people who complained have actually come back to me and said they quite liked the round window in the end but that's no good now."

Fellow traders were shocked at the decision and fear their shops could be next.

Soly Daneshmand, owner of Ju Ju clothes shop in Gloucester Road, Brighton, said: "It is just so petty and small-minded.

"The North Laine is like the Camden of Brighton. The whole point is shops are bohemian and individual and we all stand out in our own right. The council has control over our business rates and we have to promote ourselves and draw customers in. Ali's window looked just right for her boutique."

A council spokeswoman: "Before Mrs Moghul put the window in she was told by the council she would need planning permission. However, she went ahead and put the window in anyway and the council received a lot of complaints from residents and the North Laine Community Association.

"The council asked her to put in a retrospective planning application, which the planning committee refused and which was subsequently also refused on appeal by the Government's planning inspectorate.

"The council would ask people to apply for planning permission before carrying out building works, to avoid situations like this occurring."

Thursday, November 10, 2005