Pre-Meeting Officer Report

Application No.:	11/01707/B
Applicant:	Mr Graham Brew
Proposal:	Demolition of existing attached garage/outbuilding, division of existing plot to provide new plot, erection of a dwelling and creation of parking/hardstanding to existing and proposed dwelling
Site Address:	Sabrew Main Road Sulby Isle Of Man IM7 2HF
Case Officer:	Miss S E Corlett
Photo Taken:
Site Visit:
Expected Decision Level:	Planning Committee

Officer's Report

THIS APPLICATION IS REFERRED TO THE PLANNING COMMITTEE AS THE LOCAL AUTHORITY AND THE HIGHWAYS AUTHORITY BOTH RECOMMEND REFUSAL AND THE APPLICATION IS RECOMMENDED FOR APPROVAL

The Site

1. The site is the residential curtilage of Sabrew, an existing traditional cottage finished in pea dashed render with its original stacks and window arrangement and sliding sash windows. The dwelling sits on the southern side of the A3 Main Road between The Millrace and Sulby Bridge. To the left of the house is a garden with a tall hedge running along the roadside. To the right of the house is a single storey shed with a sheeted roof and rendered walling. The shed is 12.3m long and 5.5m wide and 3.8m high. The shed is physically attached to the house and has two large doors in the elevation which faces the main road. There is no boundary walling or hedging between the front of the shed and the road.

1. The site has a frontage to the road of 68m and a depth of between 30m and 40m. To the rear of the site is the millrace watercourse which has been culverted over.

The Proposal

1. Proposed is the demolition of the shed (for which planning permission is required as it is physically attached to another structure) and the erection of a new dwelling. The new dwelling would be sited 4.5m from the western gable of the existing cottage and it will be traditionally styled, similar to the existing dwelling but longer - 10.7m compared with 9.5m and taller - 6.4m compared with 5.8m. The new dwelling will be finished in painted render and slate-like roof tiles.

1. The dwelling will have vehicular parking to the left of the house, between the existing and the proposed dwelling, and at least two new parking facilities for the existing house will be provided to the left of the existing house, removing the existing vegetation and creating at least four parking spaces - two side by side.

Planning Status And Policy

1. The site lies within an area of Residential use on the Sulby Local Plan of 1999.

1. As such the proposal should be considered in respect of General Policy 2 of the Strategic Plan which states:

"Development which is in accordance with the land use zoning and proposals in the appropriate Area Plan and with other policies of this Strategic Plan will normally be permitted, provided that the development:

b) respects the site and surroundings in terms of the siting, layout, scale, form, design and landscaping of buildings and the space around them; c) does not affect adversely the character of the surrounding landscape or townscape; d) does not adversely affect the protected wildlife or locally important habitats on the site or adjacent land, including water courses; g) does not affect adversely the amenity of local residents or the character of the locality; h) provides satisfactory amenity standards in itself, including where appropriate safe and convenient access for all highway users, together with adequate parking, servicing and manoeuvring space; i) does not have an adverse effect on road safety or traffic flows on the local highways; l) is not on contaminated land or subject to unreasonable risk of erosion or flooding."

1. Sulby is recognised in Spatial Policy 4 as a village where "development should maintain the existing settlement character and should be of any appropriate scale to meet local needs for housing and limited employment opportunities." Development within Sulby village would be considered sustainable in terms of the definitions of the Plan (Strategic Policy 1, 2

1. Strategic Policy 3 requires that "the individual character of our towns and villages is protected or enhanced by having regard in the design of new development to the use of local materials and character".

1. Environment Policy 42 states: New development in existing settlements must be designed to take account of the particular character and identity in terms of buildings and landscape features of the immediate locality."

1. The site lies within a high flood risk zone from river flooding with a return period of one in 100 years.

Planning History

1. Planning permission was granted for the infilling of the millrace under PA 97/0848 and alterations permitted to Sabrew under 99/1922.

Representations

1. Lezayre Parish Commissioners object to the application on the basis that whilst the principle of a dwelling on the site is acceptable, they consider the proposed dwelling to be too large for the plot and one the same size and height as Sabrew would be acceptable.

1. The Highways Division do not recommend that the application is permitted on the basis that the required visibility splays of 2m by 90m are not available and that Manx Roads 1 states that on strategic/primary routes no new major frontage access should be permitted.

1. The residents of Strooan-y-Wyllin which lies next door to the application express concern about the future of the boundary wall and seek liaison regarding the preparation and edging. They would also seek assurance that the surface water culvert into which the proposed development will discharge is capable of accommodating the additional water. They also express concern about tree planting within a close distance of the water course as this is part of the Main River where certain planting restrictions apply.

1. The Isle of Man Water and Sewerage Authority raise no objection provided that the development is connected to the main sewerage system in a manner acceptable to them. This is a matter for the Drainage Authority under their legislation and is not a material planning consideration. They raise no issues in respect of the potential for flooding of the site.

1. The Manx Electricity Authority seek consultation regarding the provision of a supply of electricity.

Assessment

1. The site is a sustainable one where development would normally be encouraged. In this case the site has on it unattractive structures which would be better replaced by an appropriately designed building. The design of the proposed building is traditional in style and slightly taller and wider than Sabrew within a streetscene which is mostly but not exclusively vernacular cottages in this part of the village.

1. The dwelling will have 1m and 4.2m from its side boundaries and will have a rear garden with a depth of 7.5m. As such it is not considered that the development is over-intensive and whilst the property is taller and wider than Sabrew, there is no particular uniformity to the height and massing of buildings in the streetscene such as would be so adversely affected as to warrant refusal of this application.

1. The Strategic Plan requires that a safe and convenient access onto the highway. Whilst the visibility splay has walling and gate pillars within it, at present vehicles associated with Sabrew park on the highway and there is vegetation, both of which block visibility for vehicles emerging from the site. The provision of off road parking for Sabrew will improve this situation. Whilst the Highways Division is concerned that Manx Roads states that no major frontage access should be approved on strategic routes, the introduction of two domestic accesses is not considered to be "major" and the speed of traffic using the road is restricted to 30 mph. The provisions for access will increase the off road parking provision from what it is presently. Whether the proposal will result in a reduction in traffic would depend upon the intensity of use of the existing workshop/shed.

1. Visibility for the new dwelling would be across the frontage of the site which is within the applicant's ownership and all walling will be below 1m in height thus providing splays of 2m by 36 in both directions as required by the Highways Division. The visibility for Sabrew from the entrance to the new parking spaces are more restricted due to the proximity on the northern side to physical obstacles outside the applicant's control which are over 1m in height. Whilst there are no walls within the visibility splay to the north, there is a hard surfaced area in front of Strooan-ny-Wyllin on which vehicles are parked and these vehicles will impede visibility from the new parking spaces associated with Sabrew. The removal of the existing vegetation in front of the side garden of Sabrew will however improve visibility for those in the vehicles parked in front of Strooan-ny-Wyllin. There are also vehicles parked, quite legitimately on the road which will obscure visibility for all vehicles trying to emerge from parking spaces on this side of the road.

1. The parking provision for Sabrew will potentially remove parked vehicles from the public highway and whilst the visibility to the north may be compromised by parked vehicles, the overall improvement in terms of removing vehicles from the road, improving visibility for those in vehicles at Strooan-ny-Wyllin is considered to outweigh this concern, particularly when if there are no vehicles parked in front of Strooan-ny-Wyllin, the required visibility is available. The proposal will result in the removal of an unattractive building within the streetscene and its replacement by a traditionally designed dwelling which will complement the remaining dwellings round about. As such, the application is recommended for approval.

Party Status

1. The local authority is, by virtue of the Town and Country Planning (Development Procedure) Order 2005, paragraph 6 (5) (d), considered an "interested person" and as such should be afforded party status.

1. The residents of Strooan-ny-Wyllin are immediately alongside the site and as such should be afforded party status in this case.

1. The Isle of Man Water and Sewerage Authority and The Manx Electricity Authority raise issues which are not material planning considerations and as such should not be afforded party status in this case.

1. The Department of Transport Highways and Traffic Division is now part of the Department of Infrastructure of which the planning authority is part. As such, the Highways and Traffic Division cannot be afforded party status in this instance.

Recommendation

Recommended Decision: Permitted

Date of Recommendation: 19.04.2012

Conditions and Notes for Approval / Reasons and Notes for Refusal

C: Conditions for approval N: Notes attached to conditions R: Reasons for refusal O: Notes attached to refusals

C 1. The development hereby permitted shall commence before the expiration of four years from the date of this notice.

C 2. This permission relates to the demolition of the existing shed and the erection of a dwelling as shown in drawings 01 and 02 received on 12th December 2011, and 03A and 04B received on 8th February, 2012.

I confirm that this decision has been made by the Planning Committee in accordance with the authority afforded to it under the Town and Country (Development Procedure) 2005

Decision Made: 8 Committee Meeting Date: 30-4-12

Further to the decision of the Committee an additional report/condition reason is required. Signing Officer to delete as appropriate.

☑ YES / ☐ NO

The proposed dent fails to provide sufficient U.S. sprays for drivers emerging from the proposed party spaces in accord with recognized highway safety standards (2m x 90m). As such the app fails to accord with GP 2h.