DEC Officer Report

Application No.: 19/00985/B Applicant: Vicci Laslett Proposal: Alterations, erection of rear two storey extension, installation of a heat pump to rear of garage, widening of access and relocation of a tree Site Address: 29 The Park Onchan Isle Of Man IM3 1HR Planning Officer: Mr Nick Salt Expected Decision Level: Officer Delegation Recommended Decision: Refused Date of Recommendation: 14.10.2019 _________________________________________________________________ Reasons for Refusal R : Reasons for Refusal O : Notes attached to reasons R 1. The visual impact of the proposed extension would be of unacceptable detriment to the character and appearance of the street scene as the large two storey flat roofed extension would be clearly visible from the street and would not meet the best practice design standards of the Department's Residential Design Guidance, or General Policy 2 in this regard.

_______________________________________________________________ Interested Person Status – Additional Persons

None _____________________________________________________________________________

Officer’s Report

1.0 SITE - 1.1 The site is the residential curtilage of 29 The Park, Onchan. The site dwelling is a detached, two storey dwelling. It is finished in brown, dashed render and red tile hipped roof with white framed uPVC windows and doors. At the south west of the site curtilage there is a driveway, with a garden at both the front and the rear (bounded by high vegetation). There is also a garage at the south west boundary, adjacent to a patio area at the rear.

1.2 At present, there is a two storey, flat roofed annex 3.6m across and 5.1m deep which contains the dining room on the ground floor and ensuite area on the first floor, it features two large windows which face towards the site garage and No.30 The Park to the south west. - 1.3 The existing paved driveway is 2.6m wide at the side of the dwelling, with potential to accommodate 2 vehicles. - 1.4 The Park in general is characterised by medium to large detached dwellings such as this site, with Onchan Park at the other side of the street, and tree lined residential roads. At the rear of the site is an informal access lane.

2.0 PROPOSAL - 2.1 Proposed is an expansion to the south west of the existing two storey annex on the rear elevation of the dwelling. The extension would be a continuation of the general form and height of the existing annex, also featuring a flat roof, and brown render finish. - 2.2 The extension would in effect 'stretch' the existing the full length of the rear elevation, occupying space on site which is currently a patio area. There would be additional patio doors on the north west facing (rear) elevation, to match those on the existing annex, and two large windows on the first floor above this. On the south west elevation there would be a reduction in glazing, with a small obscure glazed bathroom window, and a door on the ground floor for access into the proposed kitchen area. All windows proposed are white uPVC to match the existing dwelling. - 2.3 Also proposed is the expansion and widening of the driveway at the front of the dwelling through the removal of part of the garden there. This would provide an additional parking space. The relocation of a palm tree to the north east is proposed to accommodate these changes. - 2.4 An air source heat pump is proposed for the rear of the existing garage, to be mounted on the rear garage wall. It would measure approximately 1mx1m, and half a metre in depth. The product specification lists the decibel level sound pressure as 47dB at 1 metre.

3.0 PLANNING HISTORY - 3.1 A similar planning application was approved in December 2018 for an smaller two storey extension to the rear (18/01134/B).

4.0 PLANNING POLICY - 4.1 The Onchan Local Plan 2000 designates the site as within an area zoned for Residential use (Map 1 - Village). - 4.2 Due to the land use designation, General Policy 2 of the Isle of Man Strategic Plan 2016 applies (in part). "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 spaces around them;

• (c) does not affect adversely the character of the surrounding landscape or townscape; (g) does not affect adversely the amenity of local residents or the character of the locality;

• (n) is designed having due regard to best practice in reducing energy consumption."

4.3 It is also important to have regard to Paragraph 8.12.1 of the Strategic Plan:

• "As a general policy, in built up areas not controlled by Conservation Area or Registered Building policies, there will be a general presumption in favour of extensions to existing property where such extensions would not have an adverse impact on either adjacent property or the surrounding area in general."
• 4.4 The Strategic Plan also provides guidance on the installation of renewable energy apparatus:

"12.2.8 The Department is fully supportive of the need to secure greater energy efficiency in new and existing development and has recently introduced additional energy efficiency requirements in the Building Regulations 2003. Energy efficiency and the use of renewable energy sources are covered in General Policy 2(m) of the Building Regulations. At the same time the Department recognizes that renewable energy sources can have adverse environmental impacts. The idea of a wind turbine Installation is currently being investigated and considered by the Manx Electricity Authority. Any feasible site is likely to be exposed and have considerable visual impact. There may also be other impacts such as noise. On a smaller scale, the popularity of domestic wind turbines has been increasing in recent years in response to rising energy prices and increasing awareness of climate change. Planning applications for domestic wind turbines are unlikely to require the submission of an Environmental Impact Assessment. The Department will assess any proposals for wind turbine installations by weighing the benefits of using such renewable energy sources against the environmental impact arising in any particular site. It is likely that the visual impact would be less detrimental on a coastal site than on a rural or upland one.

Accordingly:

4.5 Energy Policy 4: Development involving alternative sources of energy supply, including wind, water and tide power, and the use of solar panels, will be judged against the environmental objectives and policies set out in this Plan. Installations involving wind, water and tide power will require the submission of an EIA." - 4.6 The Onchan Local Plan 2000 contains Policy O/RES/P/21 which states that "extensions and alterations to existing residential property will generally not be opposed where such proposals are appropriate in terms of scale, massing, design, appearance and impact on adjacent property". - 4.7 Whilst not planning policy, the Department has published a politically approved Residential Design Guide (March 2019) which is capable of being a material consideration and is referenced in this report. This guidance was not in place at the time of the earlier approved application.

5.0 REPRESENTATIONS - 5.1 Onchan Commissioners recommend that the application be approved (01.10.19).

6.0 ASSESSMENT - 6.1 In considering a proposal such as this in a residential area, it important to have specific regard to potential impacts on neighbours and their amenity, parking, and the appearance of both the site itself and the street scene or character of the area. - 6.2 Neighbour Amenity

• 6.2.1 The key considerations in terms of impact on neighbours are risks of overshadowing and/or overlooking and loss of privacy to dwellings within 20 metres.

• 6.2.2 The risk of overshadowing or overbearing of any extension close to the boundary of a neighbouring terraced property is often high. Overshadowing and loss of light to habitable rooms of neighbouring properties is calculated as set out in the Design Guidance Section 7.3: "A simple check can be undertaken in relation to this issue.

• o A side view is drawn which includes the proposal site and the main face of the neighbouring property.
• o A point is identified which is 2 metres above ground level on the closest wall with a relevant window of the neighbouring building.
• o A line is drawn from this point at a 25 degree angle towards the application site. If no part of the proposal is above this line, there will still be the potential for good daylight to the interior."

• 6.2.3 The east-west movement of the sun and the relative positioning of the site dwelling in relation to its neighbours means that , for adjacent properties, there would be no unacceptable increase in shadowing onto those properties. Similarly for any overbearing, the impact of the extension is unlikely to result in unacceptable overbearing on No.28 due to the presence of the existing two storey extension, the properties to the rear due to the minimum 13 metres distance to the boundary, or No.30 due to both the distance and angle respective to habitable windows of that property, and the existing two storey dwelling on the site.
• 6.2.4 Another aspect of amenity covered by the Residential Design Guidance is the risk of unacceptable overlooking, particularly from two storey rear extensions.
• 6.2.5 With regard to the properties to the rear - particularly 66 and 68 Summer Hill Road, two large bedroom windows would be situated closer to their rear gardens. That being said, the windows would be in place of 2 existing windows, and the reduction in separating distance would not be more than 5 metres. The houses to the rear are set higher than the site, and bounded by a good degree of hedging and shrubbery. Overlooking impact on these properties would be minimal, especially given the secondary habitable nature of the bedrooms from which they would provide outlook.
• 6.2.6 Where overlooking is more likely to occur is on No.30 due to the proximity of the first floor window on the south west elevation of the proposed extension. The applicant has however, proposed obscure glazing in this window to reduce impact. In addition, as it is a bathroom window as per the proposed floor plans (non-habitable room window) overlooking risk is further reduced.

6.3 Parking Provision

• 6.3.1 Parking provision on the site is expected to be improved with addition of an additional space - bringing it into line with Isle of Man Strategic Plan parking standards included in Appendix 7 (2 spaces for standard residential dwellings). This would reduce dependence on on-street parking thus improving the area in terms of highway safety and visual amenity.

6.4 Impact on Appearance/ Street Scene

• 6.4.1 The existing, and the previously approved (18/01134/B) extensions are considered to be minimally, if at all, visible from the public thoroughfare of The Park and would not be visible from Onchan Park, thus limiting potential adverse impact on the appearance of the street scene.

• 6.4.2 The proposed extension is, however, larger and would be visible from the road - with a clear view of the gable - more so than current views of the existing rear extension from the other side. The aforementioned residential design guidance has been published since the previous approval and indicates a desire by the Department to see improved design in relation

• to domestic development - including extensions. The Guidance notes in 3.2.1, "Extensions should generally appear subordinate to the existing house i.e. appear as smaller additions rather than being overbearing features dominating the existing house," and in 3.2.2, "Generally, pitch roofs are the preferred roof type compared to flat roofs which are generally inappropriate forms of development, especially if publically viewable, unless the existing property has a flat/low pitched roof design."
• 6.4.3 When assessed against both the above, and the wider objectives of General Policy 2 (b,c&g), it is considered that the proposed extension would be unacceptably large in relation to the existing dwelling, would be unacceptably visible from the public road and would detract from the character and appearance of the site and the street scene.
• 6.4.4 The expansion of the paved driveway would retain over 50% of the grassed area of front garden and thus not severely impact the front of the site visually. The continuation of the paved hard surface would also constitute an attractive feature on the property. The retention and relocation of the tree as proposed would also have no such detrimental impact.
• 6.5 Air Source Heat Pump

• 6.5.1 This part of the proposal would accord with GP2(n) in respect of non-renewable energy consumption and the general support in the Strategic Plan for the installation of renewable energy installations. The apparatus is modest in size - it is likely that the visual impact would be low given the positioning at the rear of the garage and not visible from any public vantage point or highway. In this respect the proposal accords with GP2(b,c,g).

6.2 In terms of noise impact, the sound pressure level of the heat pump at 47dB @ 1 metre would not be significantly different than that expected from an outdoor oil boiler. For reference, 50dB is similar to the noise generated by light traffic, 60dB that of normal conversation or an air conditioner. There will be a background noise generated but this is not considered likely to have a detrimental impact on the amenity of the neighbours given the distances from the neighbouring property to the rear of 13 metres to the boundary, and the garage of No.30 (adjacent) between it and the main dwelling on that site. Overall, it is not considered that unacceptable noise pollution would result from the ASHP insomuch as to be of detriment to the residential amenity of the neighbours. - 7.0 CONCLUSION

7.1 In summary, whilst the proposal is considered to be in broad accordance with the Strategic Plan and Local Plan in terms of neighbour impacts and parking provision, it is considered that the visual impact of the proposed extension would be of unacceptable detriment to the character and appearance of the street scene as the large two storey flat roofed extension would be clearly visible from the street and would not meet the best practice design standards of the Department's Residential Design Guidance, or General Policy 2 in this regard. For that reason, the proposal is considered unacceptable on balance and is recommended for refusal. 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 a Principal Planner in accordance with the authority afforded to that Officer by the appropriate DEFA Delegation.

Decision Made : Refused Date: 14.10.2019 Determining officer

Signed : S CORLETT Sarah Corlett Principal Planner

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