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Application No.: 23/00194/C Applicant: Mr Martin Katz Proposal: Change of use application from Commercial Office to residential dwelling with additional use for tourism with associated works Site Address: 17 Hope Street Douglas Isle Of Man IM1 1AQ Planning Officer: Mr Hamish Laird Expected Decision Level: Officer Delegation Recommended Decision: Permitted Date of Recommendation: 26.04.2023
C : Conditions for approval N : Notes attached to conditions C 1. The development hereby approved shall be begun before the expiration of four years from the date of this decision notice.
Reason: To comply with Article 26 of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) Order 2019 and to avoid the accumulation of unimplemented planning approvals.
This application has been recommended for approval for the following reason. The application accords with paragraph 9.5.8, Business Policy 13, Environment Policies 23 and 35, General Policy 2 and Community Policies 7 and 11 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016.
This approval relates to Site Plan, Location Plan and floor plans all date stamped and received 20/02/2023. _______________________________________________________________
None. _____________________________________________________________________________
Officer’s Report SITE
1.1 The site comprises a two-storey, mid-terraced office, formerly occupied as a dwelling located on the North West side of Hope Street, Douglas. It has a cream-painted render finish to its walls and a slate, pitched roof with a shared multi flue, chimney stack projecting from the ridge. The property benefits from a front garden area screened form the road by a low boundary wall with railings atop. To the rear lies an access lane set between the site and the 5-storey, Bank of Scotland building. Similar strictures lie either side of the site with No. 16 being owned/operated by the applicant as an office. Short-term on-street Disc parking is available on the opposite side of Hope Street, which is one-way, with the front aspect looking out onto a private car parking area, which adjoins the Parish Church of St George. - 1.2 The site lies within the Settlement Boundary for Douglas and lies within the Douglas Town Centre Boundary, where it is classed as being located within the "4. St George's Mixed Use Proposals Area", as shown in the Island Development Plan - Area Plan for the East (1 December, 2020). The site lies just outside the Athol Street/Victoria Street Conservation Area which is marked by the churchyard serving St Georges Church in the vicinity of the site. PROPOSAL
2.1 The full application proposes the "Change of use application from Commercial Office to residential dwelling with additional use for tourism with associated works". - 2.2 The application forms state that the proposals involve internal alterations to convert the existing office into a single residential dwelling with additional use for tourism. It is supported by A Fire Strategy and Risk Profile which is a formal assessment of the proposed designs acceptability in terms of fire safety commensurate with the Building Regulations 2014 (Isle of Man). The submitted drawings show the existing office use of No. 17 on 3 floors, with the proposed residential /tourism use providing the following accommodation:
Ground floor: Entrance lobby/hall, stairs up to first floor; WC; combined Kitchen/Dining area to the rear with lounge to the front.
First Floor: Stairs and Bedroom 1 with Dressing area and shower/WC. Second floor (Roof-space): Stairs down and Bedroom 2 with Dressing area and shower/WC and two storage areas within the roof void under each side of the roof-slope.
2.2 There are no physical works proposed. 2 No. car parking spaces are shown on plan located to the rear of the property deriving access from the access lane to the rear of the site. PLANNING HISTORY - 3.1 94/01317/B - Conversion of dwelling into office accommodation, 17 Hope Street, Douglas. Approved - 8/2/98. PLANNING POLICY - 4.1 In terms of local plan policy, the site lies within the Settlement Boundary for Douglas and lies within the Douglas Town Centre Boundary, where it is classed as being located within the "4. St George's Mixed Use Proposals Area", as shown in the Island Development Plan Area Plan for the East (1 December, 2020). The site lies just outside the Athol Street/Victoria Street Conservation Area which is marked by the churchyard serving St Georges Church in the vicinity of the site.
4.2 In terms of paragraphs and policies within the Strategic Plan, Environment Policy 35 seeks to protect the character and appearance of the Conservation Area, and Paragraph 9.5.8 and Business Policy 13 set out a general presumption in support of private dwellings as tourist
accommodation provided it does not compromise the amenity of the neighbours, Environment Policy 23 also addresses changes to neighbouring amenity as a result of development. The general design standards set out in GP2 and the Residential Design Guide 2021 shall also be taken into consideration along with Environment Policy 13, Community Policies 7 and 11 in respect of flood risk, minimising criminal activity and reducing spread of fire.
REPRESENTATIONS Copies of representations received can be viewed on the Government's website. This report contains summaries only.
5.1 Castletown Commissions - no comments received as of 30/11/2022.
5.2 Department of Infrastructure Highway Services - comments received on 16/3/23 Highways advises: - "23/00194/C - After reviewing this Application, Highway Services HDC finds it to have no significant negative impact upon highway safety, network functionality and /or parking. The Applicant is advised that to consider installing cycle parking storage and an electric vehicle charging point to aid Active Travel and net zero objectives."
5.3 Douglas Corporation - No comments received at time of drafting report. - 5.4 Manx Utilities Authority - Electricity (Jane Hennedy) - No comments received at time of drafting report. - 5.5 No third party/neighbour representations had been received at the report drafting stage.
ASSESSMENT 6.1 The application seeks approval for the change of use of the existing offices to a residential use with the additional use of the residential property as tourist accommodation. Both uses are generally supported as long as they would not compromise neighbouring amenity. Although there is generally a view in favour of using domestic properties as tourist accommodation, there can be times when this is opposed. There have been a small number of refusals given to applications looking to gain the same permission; the use of flats for tourist accommodation could potentially have a damaging effect on the amenities of others through the comings and goings of tourists in comparison to permanent residents, although most are granted approval there has been an instance of one refusal - PA 04/00194/C.
6.2 In the case of town centre properties like this there is already a significant degree of activity in the area given the adjoining office uses. No. 16 Hope Street, is owned/controlled by the applicant and is to be retained for office use. The Bank of Scotland building located to the rear of the site is used for financial services; and, a private car park available for use by the public is located on the opposite side of Hope Street to the site. It would, therefore, be difficult to differentiate between the behaviours of tourists, permanent residents or office workers, as well as car park users and on-street parking in identifying the various comings and goings in the locality, which may be no more apparent than the daily movements of those living in the property and those in the nearby area. It may be that as a tourist, a person may be out a lot of the time, but may also have a greater number of late nights and be disruptive on return. On the other hand, permanent residents may be at home more, and could be more likely to invite friends or family over for dinner or parties that may be noisy. In this case, it is noted that the surrounding and nearby uses are mostly commercial offices, or retail units apart from St Georges Church which is located close-by to the west. In general, it is considered that incidences of anti-social or disruptive behaviour are very unlikely to arise as a result of the proposed development.
6.3 The existing property is shown on the submitted plans as benefitting from 2 No. off road vehicle parking spaces to the rear and it is unlikely that there will be any new or increased demands on parking beyond that of the existing residential demand and use as a result of the tourist proposal. There are bus stops located in the vicinity of the site and on-street parking in Hope Street, and nearby in public car parks a short walk away. These could be used by the
7.1 For these reasons the proposal is considered to comply with the relevant polices of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016 and there is no demonstrable harm to the above outlined interests arising from the application. The living conditions of the neighbouring properties would not be made worse as a result of the proposal and as there are no physical works proposed there is to be no impact on the character and appearance of the property within the street scene, or to the character and appearance of the adjoining Conservation Area around St Georges Church.
7.2 The application accords with the provisions of Environment Policy 35, Business Policy 13, Environment Policy 23, General Policy 2 and Community Policies 7 and 11 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016, and is recommended for approval.
INTERESTED PERSON STATUS 8.1 By virtue of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) Order 2019, the following persons are automatically interested persons:
8.2 The decision maker must determine:
I can confirm that this decision has been made by a Principal Planner in accordance with the authority afforded to that Officer by the appropriate DEFA Delegation and that in making this decision the Officer has agreed the recommendation in relation to who should be afforded Interested Person Status.
Decision Made : Permitted Date: 09.05.2023 Determining officer Signed : J SINGLETON Jason Singleton Principal Planner
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