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Department of Planning DEFA Murray House Mount Havelock Douglas Isle of Man IM1 2SF
10th December 2019.
Dear Sir / Madam,
Re: Revised application for site previously approved by PA 18/00862/B (16 homes), detailed planning application for proposed demolition of an existing house and development of a residential estate consisting of 16 homes, including associated onsite infrastructure and landscaping works, and offsite highway upgrade works, Farm Hill Lane, Farm Hill, Douglas, Isle of Man.
The following information is provided in support of this planning application.
PREVIOUSLY APPROVED DEVELOPMENT
Planning application PA18/00862/B, for the development of 16 homes, was approved on the 25th February 2019. The key points of that application were;
Planning Policy - Land is zoned for residential use Affordable housing - Policy compliant, with 4 units (25%) being provided.
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Technically, the scheme is fully compliant. Work has commenced on the approved scheme, including demolition, site strip, drainage and road construction, which should be completed early in 2020.
This application is very similar to the previously approved scheme for this site and includes changes to the house types and the road layout.
The proposed site access will remain off Farm Hill Lane, in exactly the same position as the previously approved layout.
The total number of plots remains the same, at 16no. two storey houses. Some semi-detached dwellings have been used to allow slightly larger house types to be proposed and this has also resulted in a small increase in onsite public open space provision.
The proposed boundary treatment, closest to Farm Hill Cottage, will remain the same as the approved scheme, as agreed with the owner of Farm Hill Cottage.
| Public Open Space - | Partially provided on site with a commuted sum payment of £17,952 agreed with Douglas Council to make up for the shortfall. |
| Highways - | Compliant |
| Drainage - | Compliant |
| Trees - | No issues |
| Ecology - | No issues |
| Impact on Neighbours - | Agreement to upgrade common boundary with Farm Hill Cottage |
The 16 new homes will include 12 no .4 bed homes, some with integral garages, and 4 no .2 bed affordable homes. All properties will be provided with two off road car parking spaces and private gardens.
The proposed house styles are traditional in form and the use of different house types and different finishes within the same house type, will add variation and interest to the streetscape. The pallet of materials will include facing brickwork, painted rendered walls and pitched roofs and will generally be in keeping with the houses in the area.
The landscaping proposals remain similar to that previously approved.
The south western gable of the house on Plot 16 is in the same position, relative to the retained trees, as the previously approved house, so tree root protection and overshadowing from trees, should all be acceptable.
New soft landscaping and trees have been used to soften the street views, particularly where frontage parking is proposed.
Manx Roots have been consulted on the revised layout and their recommendations are included within the planning application, together with the Root Protection drawing for the new layout.
Highway matters remain similar to the previously approved scheme. iTransport have assessed the proposed revised layout and their report is included as part of the planning application package.
All dwellings will be provided with 2 no. off road car parking spaces and cycle storage can be accommodated in all properties, either in garages, or in cycle storage sheds in the garden.
The common boundary treatment agreed with the owner of Farm Hill Cottage, as part of the previous planning approval (PA18/00862/B), remains unchanged and forms part of this revised planning application.
Also, the two house which are closest to Farm Hill Cottage, Plots 15 & 16, are now both further away. The two-storey face of house 16 is over 1.5m further away from Farm Hill Cottage compared to the approved scheme.
The planning application package includes a cross section to show that the relationship between dwelling on plots 11 & 12 and the existing dwellings, is acceptable.
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| No. of Homes | No. of Beds | Formal | Play | Amenity | Total Rqd (Sq.m.) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 2 | 144 | 48 | 64 | 256 |
| 12 | 3 or More | 648 | 216 | 288 | 1152 |
| 792 | 264 | 352 | 1408 sqm |
To satisfy the requirement for affordable homes, 25% of the 16no. houses would need to be provided as affordable homes, which equates to 4 homes.
4 no. affordable homes are proposed to be provided; Plots 6,7,8 & 9. This can be secured by entering into a Section 13 agreement, which would supersede the extant section 13 agreement.
Planning application 18/00862/B was approved for 16 houses and provided 1,027sqm of amenity space. A Commuted Sum of £17,952.00 was agreed with Douglas Council to cover the shortfall of Formal and Play space being provided.
The IOMSP, Appendix 6, provides the following guidance for the provision of Open Space in residential developments;
4.6.4.2 Table 1 is used to judge the occupancy of dwellings and the subsequent open space requirement in square metres.
Table 1
For the proposed 18no. homes, the Required area of Public Open Space is 1408 sqm, based on the following calculation; {{table:402680}} The revised scheme will provide 1,093sqm of amenity space, as indicated on the proposed site plan, a small increase on the approved scheme;
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Douglas Borough Council have not been consulted on this latest current layout, due to its similarities with the approved scheme. We would welcome the Councils proposals for a revised Commuted Sum, which can be secured by entering into a Section 13 agreement as part of the planning approval.
Ballaughton Manor Park, which is a very large area of public open space is within 100m walk from the proposed site;
All required services are available within Farm Hill Lane to service the site. The proposed drainage proposal remains similar to that previously approved for the 16 plots.
The following points are relevant to this application;
This application is very similar to the previously approved scheme for this site, with the same number of dwellings being proposed. The revised layout provides a more interesting street frontage compared to the approved scheme and reduces the 'pressures' on the two large trees on the north western corner of the site, which are no longer locating in a proposed garden.
The site is zoned for residential use so it's development will comply with planning policy. It is in a very sustainable location, set within a residential area with a school, shops, parks and access to public transport links close by, all of which can be access on foot.
Access to the site will be improved for both vehicles and pedestrians with the upgrading of the southern end of Farm Hill Lane and by the creation of additional sections of footpaths.
The proposed development will be of high-quality design and construction, in keeping with Hartford Homes usual standards, and the range of houses will include affordable homes.
Overall, the proposed development will provide much needed additional family homes for the Douglas area, including 4 no. affordable Homes.
We trust the above and enclosed information is sufficient for this application to be considered but should you have any questions then please do not hesitate to contact our offices.
Yours faithfully
George Li For and on behalf of Hartford Ltd.
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