Officer Report

Application No.: 18/00897/C Applicant: William Tindale Proposal: Change of use of property from cafe and apartment to full residential use Site Address: Tower Buildings Strand Road Port Erin Isle of Man IM9 6HE Principal Planner: Miss S E Corlett Photo Taken: 24.09.2018 Site Visit: 24.09.2018 Expected Decision Level: Officer Delegation Recommended Decision: Permitted Date of Recommendation: 08.11.2018 _________________________________________________________________

Conditions and Notes for Approval

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 14 of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) (No2) Order 2013 and to avoid the accumulation of unimplemented planning approvals.

Plans/Drawings/Information: This decision relates to the drawings and plans received on 22nd August, 2018. _______________________________________________________________

Interested Person Status

Additional Persons NONE _____________________________________________________________________________ Officer’s Report THE SITE

1.1 The site is the curtilage of a three storey building situated on the southern side of Strand Road which links Athol Park, Station Road and Shore Road (lower promenade). The building is similar to the three adjacent properties to the west - all commercial use at ground floor with living accommodation above and with commercial shopfronts with large expanses of glass alongside the front door, although the property to the south east is a two storey domestic

• property which is quite different. The building is currently painted a striking and unfortunate green colour.
• 1.2 The properties to the east of the site are all residential on all floors with relatively small windows and pedestrian doors. The properties towards the beach are commercial on the ground floor - Erin Curios which was closed at the time of the site visit (Monday 24th September, 2018 at around 1500hrs), a vacant property alongside which is presently for let/sale and on the other side of the lane is a veterinary practice, Bridge Bookshop and a residential property with a nursery across the lane then two more residential properties before the ice cream parlour/cafe. THE PROPOSAL

2.1 The property has had permission for use of the ground floor as a cafe and was formerly a shop. Proposed is the conversion of the ground floor commercial area to residential, resulting in the property being a single dwelling. No changes to the building are proposed. - 2.2 The applicant suggests that the property has been marketed at a price of £299,999 between September 2012 and March 2014 with reductions in the price made within this period. Written advice from Harmony Homes indicates that as the property is in dual use this makes it undesirable from an investor's point of view and in the case of commercial mortgages a much higher deposit is required, sometimes around 40% and with additional proof required from the purchaser that they have experience running a successful business. Cash buyers for this type of property are few and far between, they say. PLANNING POLICY

3.1 The site lies within an area designated on the Area Plan for the South as Mixed Use which reflects the variety of uses in the area - commercial, offices, cafes and take-aways, residential and tourism. The Written Statement provides advice on development in such areas and the subject of commercial development in the village:

"6.14.1 Port Erin and Castletown (as 'Service Centres'), should provide a range of employment opportunities and will be the main focus for retailing within the South. Indeed, both of these settlements offer some comparison and convenience shopping."

"6.14.3 The Proposal Map (Map 3) and Inset Maps (Maps 4-7) show most of the retail areas subsumed within the Mixed Use designation. This allows a degree of flexibility for the location of town centre facilities and helps stimulate a range of uses within the settlements to encourage vitality and viability."

"6.17 Current Retail Provision in Port Erin (a Service Centre) 6.17.1 The retail area within Port Erin Village stretches from the supermarket on Bay View Road and the parade of shops on Orchard Walk, across Church Road and Station Road, and down Strand Road to the Lower Promenade. Whilst there are often vacant units, and a number of seasonal shops, the range of services is varied and the overall character lively."

6.21 Future Requirements for Retail Provision in the South

• "6.21.1 The Isle of Man Retailing Study Report (May 2009) states that "the large majority of any future retail floorspace requirement in the Isle of Man should be provided in Douglas and the other key centres of Peel, Ramsey and Castletown". It goes on to state that there "may also be merit and justification in planning, regeneration and economic terms, to allow additional smaller scale retail development in one of the key village centres such as Onchan, Port Erin, Port St Mary and Laxey".
• "6.22.3 There is more potential within Port Erin to accommodate further convenience shopping. There are places within the Mixed Use area which are under-used but have real potential. Opportunities exist to enhance the built environment and comparison shopping facilities and

the Department will support proposals which will achieve these goals. The Development Brief for Site 21 (Land Opposite the Cherry Orchard Hotel) highlights the importance of making the best use of sites in the Mixed Use area."

3.2 The Plan also includes reference to office use, indicating that such uses can be acceptable on the ground floor of premises in mixed use areas particularly where this makes use of vacant premises and where it would not have an adverse impact on the character and appearance of the area (paragraph 6.5.3). - 3.3 The relevant proposals in the Plan are as follows:

Mixed Use Proposal 1: In order to maintain and enhance the vitality of the Mixed Use areas in Port Erin, Castletown and Ballasalla, there will be a presumption in favour of the retention of existing retail units on the ground floor although each case will be determined upon its circumstances and merits.

• Mixed Use Proposal 3: It is proposed that the Mixed Use area in Port Erin is extended to cover the Lower Promenade to encourage a diversity of uses which would add to the overall vitality and viability of the Village (see Map 7).
• Mixed Use Proposal 4: The upper floors of buildings in the Mixed Use areas of Castletown, Port Erin, Port St Mary and Ballasalla may be appropriate for office use although there will be a presumption in favour of the retention of existing residential uses subject to the circumstances and merits of any alternative uses.
• Mixed Use Proposal 5: In Castletown, Port Erin and Ballasalla, office development may be acceptable on the ground floors of buildings although there will be a presumption in favour of retaining retail units subject to the circumstances and merits of any alternative scheme and provided it does not cause significant harm to the character and appearance of the area. PLANNING HISTORY

4.1 Alterations have been approved at the premises and the use of the premises as a tea room and retail was approved under 11/01472/C. REPRESENTATIONS - 5.1 Port Erin Commissioners support the application (14.09.18 although not received until

07.11.18).

5.2 Highway Services do not oppose the application (10.10.18). ASSESSMENT - 6.1 The policies presume in favour of the retention of retail units at ground floor level in mixed use areas such as this although there is flexibility depending upon the circumstances of each application. The site lies between two areas where commercial activity is clearly viable - Station Road and the lower Promenade. The units in between are either residential or commercial, some of the latter, including the application property and its three immediate neighbours to the west were closed, vacant or for sale. None looked as if there was frequent commercial activity associated with it. Unlike the shop units further west, these properties lie in the shade and have little association with the sea front. As such, it is perhaps not surprising that they are not thriving commercial enterprises.

6.2 It is relevant that there are purely residential properties in close proximity to the site and already a hiatus between the commercial centre of the village and the promenade which is

more tourist-oriented. What is proposed will not change this but will introduce activity and use at ground floor level. On balance, the loss of this unit which has not been used for some time for commercial purposes, is not considered objectionable, even if it led to similar proposals for the three units to the west.

CONCLUSION

7.1 The proposal is considered to accord with the land use designation - the area remains mixed use - and MU Proposals 1 and 3 of the Area Plan. INTERESTED PERSON STATUS - 8.1 By virtue of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) (No 2) Order 2013 Article 6(4), the following persons are automatically interested persons:

• (a) The applicant, or if there is one, the applicant's agent;
• (b) The owner and the occupier of any land that is the subject of the application or any other person in whose interest the land becomes vested;
• (c) Any Government Department that has made written submissions relating to planning considerations with respect to the application that the Department considers material
• (d) Highway Services Division of Department of Infrastructure and
• (e) The local authority in whose district the land the subject of the application is situated.

8.2 The decision maker must determine:

• o whether any other comments from Government Departments (other than the Department of Infrastructure Highway Services Division) are material; and
• o whether there are other persons to those listed in Article 6(4) who should be given Interested Person Status.

I can confirm that this decision has been made by the Head of Development Management in accordance with the authority afforded to that Officer by the appropriate DEFA Delegation.

Decision Made : Permitted Date : 08.11.2018 Determining officer

Signed : S BUTLER Stephen Butler Head of Development Management

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